Pharmacogenetic testing and monitoring of complete blood counts among Veterans newly prescribed thiopurine treatments: a retrospective cohort study

Abstract

Pharmacogenetic (PGx) testing before initiation of thiopurine treatment and CBC monitoring post-initiation helps avoid adverse events and ensure patient safety. This study aims to evaluate trends in PGx testing and CBC monitoring among Veterans prescribed azathioprine, thioguanine, or mercaptopurine to demonstrate VA’s efforts to improve medication safety after an adverse event. To assess testing patterns, we used VA electronic health report data to identify 20,524 Veterans who first began thiopurine treatment between January 1, 2010, to December 31, 2021. Aggregate monthly counts of thiopurine prescriptions and associated lab tests were tabulated, and the trend in the proportion of patients tested was analyzed using the Mann–Kendall test. The proportion of patients undergoing PGx testing rose from 30.0% in 2010 to 47.5% in late 2014 (July–December). However, PGx testing and overall testing only increased slightly after the sentinel event, and orders levelled off over time at slightly lower levels than before the sentinel event. Very little change was seen in the overall proportion of individuals receiving any testing across all patients with new prescriptions from the time of the sentinel event in 2014 to the end of 2021. A large portion of patients prescribed thiopurine drugs did not receive testing that could help prevent the development of potential adverse events, leading to a predominantly reactive approach. Increased PGx testing may result in a more proactive approach to the prevention of adverse events due to genetic interaction.