According to a report, the first test to determine if some persons are at risk of developing an addiction to opioids has been authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
SOLVD Health is responsible for creating the AvertD test. The clearance was given to AutoGenomics by the FDA. SOLVD bought this unit in 2019.
It is recommended to take AvertD before starting oral opioid pain relievers for the first time in patients who are being prescribed these medications for a period of 4 to 30 days to alleviate acute pain or before undergoing surgery.
Patients who are 18 years of age or older and who have never used oral opioid pain relievers before are eligible to do this genetic test, which requires a prescription.
How to use the test: Patients are asked to swab their cheek for a DNA sample. This DNA will then be analyzed to see if any genetic variations might increase the likelihood of having an opioid abuse problem.
Reports show that over half a million individuals have died in the US from overdoses caused by opioids, a national crisis that began with these medications due to their addictive nature. This epidemic has persisted for almost twenty years.
As the United States continues to deal with the threat posed by synthetic opioids like fentanyl, which are mostly smuggled over the southern border, a US Senate study from November raised concerns about an increase in fatalities caused by these drugs among older Americans.
Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.), who is the ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Aging, examined the rise in overdose fatalities among older Americans in his study titled “The Silent Epidemic: Fentanyl and Older Americans.”
According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), AvertD is not designed to be used in people suffering from chronic pain.
A meeting of an advisory group to the health authority had taken place in October of the previous year in order to provide feedback on the previous version of the test.
