Candidate Genetic Variants Have Minimal Impact on Opioid Addiction Risk
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, Jan. 13, 2025 -- Fifteen candidate genetic variants account for only 0.40 percent of variation in opioid use disorder (OUD) risk, according to a study published online Jan. 9 in JAMA Network Open.
Christal N. Davis, Ph.D., from the Crescenz Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Philadelphia, and colleagues examined the utility of 15 genetic variants from an algorithm intended to predict OUD risk in a case-control study using electronic health record data, which were accrued from 452,664 participants with opioid exposure in the Million Veteran Program across the United States.
The researchers found that the 15 candidate genes accounted for 0.40 percent of the variation in OUD risk, while age and sex accounted for 3.27 percent of the variation. Using the 15 variants as predictive factors, the ensemble machine learning model correctly classified 52.83 percent of individuals in an independent testing sample.
"Findings of this case-control study suggest that candidate genetic variants from the approved genetic risk algorithm do not meet standards of reasonable clinical efficacy in assessing risk of opioid use disorder," the authors write. "Because genetic risk models in psychiatry will continue to emerge and could prove clinically useful, it is crucial that researchers and regulatory agencies adopt rigorous standards for developing and evaluating them prior to their application in clinical settings."
Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry; several authors reported holding relevant patents or having patents pending.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted January 2025
Read this next
Pulmonary Embolism More Common in Children Than Previously Thought
THURSDAY, May 22, 2025 -- Pulmonary embolism (PE) is more common in children than previously thought, according to a study presented at the American Thoracic Society 2025...
Half of Youth-Serving Clinicians Screen for Substance Use Disorder at Every Well Visit
THURSDAY, May 22, 2025 -- Just over half of youth-serving clinicians report that they routinely screen adolescents for substance use disorders (SUDs) at every well visit...
Many Heart Failure Patients Do Not See a Cardiologist Annually
THURSDAY, May 22, 2025 -- About 40 percent of patients with heart failure diagnosis do not see a cardiologist annually, according to a study published online May 18 in the...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.