Home Bipolar Genetic Test Causes Controversy

From The Examiner (March 24):

Home Bipolar Disorder Test Causes Stirs

By MARCUS WOHLSEN

March 24, 2008

SAN DIEGO

Dr. John Kelsoe has spent his career trying to identify the biological roots of bipolar disorder. In December, he announced he had discovered several gene mutations closely tied to the disease, also known as manic depression.

Then Kelsoe, a prominent psychiatric geneticist at the University of California, San Diego, did something provocative for the buttoned-down world of academic medical research: He began selling bipolar genetic tests straight to the public over the Internet last month for $399.

His company, La Jolla-based Psynomics, joins a legion of startups racing to exploit the boom in research connecting genetic variations to a host of health conditions. More than 1,000 at-home gene tests have burst onto the market in the past few years...

The proliferation of these tests troubles many public health officials, medical ethicists and doctors. The tests receive almost no government oversight, even though many of them are being sold as tools for making serious medical decisions...

...Read more.

Comments

[Claudia]

Testing kits sounds good but I would want my test results to come to me. If an employee needs psychological services under his health benefit package, a company paid inhouse physican is given jurisdiction and when that happens you can bet their human resource will identify the disabled employee as having inappropriate behavior versus having a biopolar disorder. Company paid doctors have only the company's interest in mind when they conduct "best practice" policy. If an employee can get an independent test result that tests positive, they can, at least, take the necessary information to a doctor "outside" the company health plan for needed psychological services. This would establish a fair and open langauge for an employee with a bipolar disorder apart from a controlling corporate paid psycholigical services that is only interested in the company's cost effecive pracitices.

[treatmeant for bipolar]

I’ ve just purchased the newly revised edition of Breggins book“ Your Drug May Be Your Problem: How and Why You Should Stop Your Psychiatric Medications.” It’ s coming in the mail as soon as it’ s released. You can pre- order it here. I hope that this revised edition may include information of withdrawing from mood stabilizers. I’ m hoping it will be greatly enlightening about all withdrawal as it’ s been many years since he wrote the first edition and I would assume he has a lot more information. I’ ll let...