Articles

Marc Andreessen famously said, “software is eating the world.” Many nowadays say that AI eats the software. What about clinical science and precision medicine? We're all so familiar with our phones, and there's so much technology in there...

Update: Tecta is linked to elevated risk of contracting COVID-19 – find more details here What is Tecta? How does Tecta work? Tecta (pantoprazole) is prescribed to treat gastrointestinal ulcers, or for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), which includes...

Chronic pain is notoriously hard to treat. Affected individuals endure pain for months or years, trying desperately to find a remedy to take the pain away. Unfortunately, less than 30% of patients respond, even with the best treatment....

Pharmacogenetics (PGx) assesses how each person metabolizes medications based on their DNA. For example, different people given the same dosage of an antidepressant may have quite different levels of the drug in their blood - some may not...

The escalating cost of biologic medications has private and public plan sponsors concerned. As a result, many are turning to new technologies to stratify patient populations with the aim of reducing the total cost of biologics. For example,...

Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI) study finds that Pillcheck helped identify medications that were not effective or posed a high risk of side effects for long-term care residents. The revised medication plans significantly improved the...

All osteoarthritis and arthritis sufferers know that this condition can severely affect your ability to lead an active life. Its trademarks are stiff and swollen joints and lots of limiting pain. Standard treatments for relief of pain and...

When it comes to cholesterol control, the first line of defence is always a healthy lifestyle and diet. But when that’s not enough, cholesterol medication can help to: Lower the heart-disease-causing bad cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein, LDL), Lower triglycerides,...

A recent study found that nearly 75% of employees in underrepresented groups — women, racial and ethnic minorities, and LGBTQ employees — do not feel they've personally benefited from their companies' diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs. As many executives...

Precision medicine, using pharmacogenomic testing, can streamline the process of finding the right treatment for each patient’s depression and result in better outcomes. Pharmacogenomics, also called pharmacogenetics or PGx, facilitates a personalized prescribing approach that utilizes a person’s...

Reviewed by Alison Wong, RPH. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition characterized by nightmares and flashbacks of past traumatic events, avoidance of reminders of trauma, hypervigilance and sleep disturbance. PTSD is often associated with other...

A recent study  pre-published by the American Journal of Gastroenterology has identified a connection between the use of Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs) and the risk of COVID-19 infections. The risk of contracting the infection appears to increase with the PPI...

Pharmacists have been long aware of the risks of combining certain pain and depression drugs. Many common antidepressants can significantly reduce the pain relief of opioid painkillers. A recent large-scale study of people who were taking antidepressants and...

If you’ve seen the movie Wall Street, you’ll remember the part when Charlie Sheen confronts the gregarious Wall Street money machine Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas). Douglas glares at Sheen and says, “OK, pal, tell me something I don’t...

Pharmacogenetics uses a patient's genetic profile to accurately predict a drug's efficacy, guide dosage and improve the safety of treatments. Depending on your genetic makeup, some medications may work faster or slower, or produce more or fewer side...

Pillcheck preferred retail pricing now available to all Canada Life health insurance customers January 7, 2021, Toronto, ON – GeneYouIn Inc., a leader in personalized medicine, today announced it is growing its relationship with Canada Life, a leading...

Genetic tests can provide predictive insights into many domains, such as ancestry, inherited predisposition to disease or your body’s ability to respond to a certain medication treatment – pharmacogenetics. Veronika Litinski, Pillcheck’s CEO, discusses the benefits for plans...

This article in Benefits Quarterly for first quarter 2017 describes how methods of personalized medicine — specifically, pharmacogenetic (PGx) testing— can benefit private health plans, benefits managers, care providers and consumers alike. The authors cover pharmacogenomics as a...

The new program builds on the successful introduction of Pillcheck pharmacogenetics by many insurers seeking to impact the frequency and duration of Short-Term and Long-Term disability claims. Now the same rigorously evaluated, secure service is available to plans...

How COVID is forcing the accelerated evolution of health benefits services and the role of pharmacogenetics in helping plan members get the right medications to support recovery from a wide variety of pandemic-related health issues. Click the image...