Pharmacogenetics of chronic cardiovascular drugs: applications and implications

Cardiovascular disease continues to be a tremendous worldwide problem, and drug therapy is a major modality to attenuate its burden. At present, conditions such as hypertension, dyslipidaemia and heart failure are pharmacologically managed with an empirical trial-and-error approach. However, it has been suggested that this approach fails to adequately address the therapeutic needs of many patients, and pharmacogenetics has been offered as a tool to enhance patient-specific drug therapy. This review outlines pharmacogenetic studies of common cardiovascular drugs, such as diuretics, beta-blockers, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers, statins and warfarin, ultimately highlighting considerations for future research and practice.