Optimizing Antipsychotic Therapy in Acute Alcoholic Hallucinosis through Pharmacogenetic Testing

This study evaluates the effectiveness and safety of pharmacotherapy personalized through pharmaco- genetic testing for patients with acute alcoholic hallucinosis (ICD-10 code F10.52). Psychotic disorders triggered by alcohol consumption, such as hallucinations and delusions, require antipsychotic treatment, though standard therapy often results in adverse drug reactions and variable efficacy. Pharmacogenetics, which examines gene variants affecting drug metabolism, may improve treatment outcomes by guiding medication selection and dosage. Fifty patients undergoing inpatient treatment for acute alcoholic hal- lucinosis were enrolled in a randomized clinical trial. The main group (n = 25) received treatment adjusted based on pharmacogenetic testing, while the control group (n = 25) received standard therapy with- out genetic data. Patient outcomes were measured using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale and the UKU Side-Effect Rating Scale. Although there were no significant differences in treatment efficacy between the groups, patients in the pharmacogenetic group experienced significantly fewer adverse drug reactions, particularly by the sixth day of hospitalization (UKU score: 500 [300; 800] vs. 1200 [1000; 1600], p < .01). This demonstrates that pharmacogenetic testing can optimize treatment safety without com- promising efficacy, suggesting that personalized therapy based on genetic profiles should be considered for alcohol-induced psychoses. Future studies with larger samples are recommended to validate these findings.

Cite this article as: Skryabin, V., Masyakin, A., Pozdniakov, S., Shatokhin, I., Sokolova, S., & Ivanchenko, V. (2024). Optimizing antipsychotic therapy in acute alcoholic hallucinosis through pharmacogenetic testing. Addicta: The Turkish Journal on Addictions, 11(3), 374-377.