Hyperuricemia PGx.
Information for gout treatment choices. A focused panel covering the genes that matter for urate-lowering therapy — including the inherited drug-reaction risk that is worth knowing before starting allopurinol. One saliva sample, run in our CLIA-certified lab, with results your prescriber can refer back to.
- One sample, no blood draw
- Results in 3–7 business days
- Share with any prescriber
Panel
Urate-lowering therapy genes
Sample
Saliva or cheek swab
Results
3–7 business days
Price
From $289
What we test
The genes behind gout treatment.
See how your genes may affect your response to certain medications. Review your results with your prescriber.
Allopurinol safety screening
Certain HLA variants are strongly associated with a rare but severe skin reaction to allopurinol. Guidelines support screening high-risk patients before starting therapy.
Urate-lowering response
Genes involved in urate handling and drug transport can influence how well urate-lowering therapy works for you.
Interactions across medications
Gout often coexists with blood pressure and kidney medications that share metabolic pathways.
Who this is for
Gout therapy is long-term — the safety screen belongs at the start, not after a reaction.
Starting allopurinol
The recommended moment for a reaction-risk screen is before the first prescription.
Treatment that has not worked
Transporter genes can explain why urate levels have not come down.
Higher-risk ancestry
Some HLA variants are more common in certain ancestry groups; screening is often recommended accordingly.
Is this test right for you?
You are about to start urate-lowering therapy.
Gout flares keep returning despite treatment.
You have kidney disease alongside gout.
You take other medications that may interact.
Your rheumatologist or provider suggested genetic testing.
You want results you can keep for future prescriptions.
Answering yes to even one of these is a good reason to test before the next prescription change.
Before you order
Total price
From $289
One-time price, shown in full at checkout before you pay. No separate fee for the kit, return shipping or the healthcare provider order.
What's included
Kit to report
A saliva or cheek-swab kit with instructions, a prepaid return label, the healthcare provider order, genetic testing in our lab and a gene-drug report in your secure portal.
Who orders the test
A licensed healthcare provider
A licensed healthcare provider in our network reviews your request and places the order during checkout, at no extra cost. No referral needed.
When to expect results
3–7 business days
After the lab receives your sample. You are notified as soon as your report is in your secure portal.
The science
What the evidence says about getting tested.
Allopurinol is the workhorse of gout therapy — and also the classic example of a preventable severe drug reaction. People carrying the HLA-B*58:01 immune marker are at sharply higher risk of allopurinol hypersensitivity syndrome, a severe skin and organ reaction. CPIC guidelines and the American College of Rheumatology both recommend screening before therapy in higher-risk patients. The reaction risk belongs at the start, not after it happens.
Up to 20%
of people in some East and Southeast Asian populations carry the HLA-B*58:01 marker linked to severe allopurinol reactions.
Source: CPIC allopurinol guideline
About 1 in 1,000
people starting allopurinol develop allopurinol hypersensitivity syndrome — rare, but severe and potentially fatal.
Source: Allopurinol pharmacovigilance literature
Most
of allopurinol hypersensitivity reactions appear within the first two months of therapy, when screening can still prevent them.
Source: Allopurinol pharmacovigilance literature
2020
gout guideline recommends HLA-B*58:01 screening before allopurinol for Southeast Asian and African American patients.
Source: ACR gout guideline, 2020
How often should you test?
Test once — your genotype doesn't change, and the recommended moment is before the first allopurinol prescription. This matters especially if you have ancestry from a higher-carrier population, kidney disease alongside gout, or a history of reactions to any medication.
References
- Hershfield MS, Callaghan JT, Tassaneeyakul W, et al. Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium guidelines for human leukocyte antigen-B genotype and allopurinol dosing: 2015 update. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics. 2015;98(1):36–37.
- FitzGerald JD, Dalbeth N, Mikuls T, et al. 2020 American College of Rheumatology guideline for the management of gout. Arthritis & Rheumatology. 2020;72(6):879–895.
- PubMed literature — allopurinol hypersensitivity syndrome and HLA-B*58:01.
Questions people actually ask
Screen before the first prescription.
One sample, one flat price, a report your prescribers can refer back to.