Benefits of Incorporating Candidate Genetic Screening for Pre-Addiction Vulnerability in the Face of the Opioid Crisis: An Opportunity for Addiction Psychiatry

There were 109,600 premature fatalities due to opioid induced overdoses in 2023.Despite a substantial body of research across the globe related to substance and non-substance behavioral addictions, the USA FDA-approved solutions, which include prescribing powerful opioids to reduce harm or the utilization of the narcotic antagonist, Naltrexone, a mu-opioid receptor blocker that works by the concept of 'psychological extinction" pose significant challenges.The former increase the risk of addiction, while the latter often suffer from poor patient compliance.This has led to an increase in opioid induced fatalities.Our team has continuously promoted early genetic addiction risk testing and pro-dopamine regulation via a nutrigenomic complex known as KB220 with 35 published clinical trials that have shown to induce "dopamine homeostasis" or even "hedonicstasis.Our group developed the statistically validated array of ten reward gene polymorphisms known as Genetic Addiction Risk Severity (GARS) with the primary identification of dopamine dysregulation.Here we review the evidence supporting the coupling of the GARS and KB220 as putative solutions to the ongoing opioid and drug addiction global pandemic.The data supports the use of genetic testing in pain and bariatric clinics, and chemical dependency programs which will help reduce the prescription of opioids and the induction of hedonic homeostasis.This presents a challenging but promising opportunity for the field of addiction psychiatry.