When your physician prescribes a medication, he or she looks at a number of factors to help find the best dose and medicine for you. Your physician needs to consider factors such as your age, weight, and gender. To assist with this process, some physicians are starting to use a practice called personalized medicine.

How It Works
Physicians use personalized medicine to help find the best medication and doses for a specific patient. Personalized medicine often uses genetic tests to detect how a patient might respond to a specific medication.

For example, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved a genetic test to find people who are more likely to be sensitive to the medication warfarin (brand name Coumadin). Physicians can use the test to help patients who take warfarin find the correct dose and reduce the risk of bleeding.

Making Better Choices
Personalized medicine is designed to help physicians make the best medication choices and prescribe the safest dose. This practice is still in its early stages. Genetic tests may help view responses to some medications, but these tests may be expensive and are not available for every medicine. Talk with your physician to find out if genetic testing or other forms of personalized medicine are available for you.