Does anyone have any experience with genetic testing for ADHD meds, and/or have any opinions on its reliability?
My DS12 has ADHD Inattentive Type. To try and avoid medication trial and error, we had gene testing done early last year. Results showed not one single medication in his "green bin" as it's called. Only one was in the middle tier (yellow). All the stimulants--yes, all of them--were in the red. The pediatrician gave us a very pat "We can't try stimulants" and told us our only option was to try the medication in the yellow bin--Guanfacine. We started that medication last February, and after a period of horrible drowsiness and then three more weeks of waiting, it finally kicked in. His teacher said he was more with it, his test scores shot up in his trouble area (math), he was more able to keep everything together at home, could write better, could complete his thoughts both verbally and on paper. I wouldn't call it a miracle, but we could tell that it helped. That was the end of 5th grade. In the beginning of 6th grade, he tested all the way out of 6th grade math and was placed in advanced 7th grade math. All was still well at school and at home, relatively. However, as the year went on, we noticed that he got less and less "with it". Grades dropped, memory disappeared, etc. Last week, his ped advised that we increase the dose, because he's grown 5 in and gained 15 lbs since he started the medication. We are now fighting the drowsiness again and enduring the three week wait period to see if it helps.
While all of this is going on, I'm sitting here reading about stimulants and how, if they work for you, the benefit is immediate and very noticeable. And I'm wondering if we should try one of the stimulants that is on his gene testing red list. There are different clinical considerations for each med, and some sound less threatening than others. One of them just says he may require a lower dose to be effective, one says it may be difficult to know how to adjust dosage. Those just sound like minor complications, not something that would completely rule a medication out. I'm going to talk to his ped next week at his checkup and ask if we can't just try one of those, because watching my very bright (gifted, even) child struggle is heartbreaking.
Has anyone done genetic testing for this purpose? If so, were the results hard and fast reliable?
