Summary
Norepinephrine has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Alcohol Use Disorder would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Alcohol Use Disorder. No registered clinical trial in this database tests Norepinephrine specifically in Alcohol Use Disorder. The evidence below comes from published literature only, so any clinical signal has not yet been tested prospectively against this condition in a registered study. The literature layer holds 2 publications for this pair: 2 clinical trial publications. Publication years run from 1991 to 2000. These are primary trial reports rather than syntheses, so results have not yet been pooled or graded independently.
The RepurpOS disease-intelligence file for Alcohol Abuse ranks 375 candidate therapeutics from Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and PubMed; only a minority carry direct clinical evidence, and this page covers one of those. Spontaneous remission context recorded for the condition: 30-40% of people with AUD achieve sustained abstinence without formal treatment at 1 year (natural recovery); but functional impairment, liver damage, and mortality risk accumulate; relapse in 50-60% within 1 year even after treatment.
Evidence table
| Evidence tier | A · Strong |
|---|---|
| Evidence score | 24.0 (trials 0.0, literature 4.0, tier 15, approved bonus 5.0) |
| Registered trials | 0 total: 0 recruiting, 0 active / not yet recruiting, 0 completed, 0 other |
| Linked publications | 2 (2 clinical trial publications) |
| Agent type | Drug (Small molecule) |
| Development stage (any indication) | Approved |
| Mechanism / class | agonist |
| Data sources | DGIdb |
| Linked via biomarker / target | ADRA2C |
How the evidence score is calculated
- Each registered trial scores by status (recruiting / active / enrolling 3, completed 2.5, not yet recruiting 2, unknown 1, terminated / withdrawn / suspended 0.5) plus a phase bonus (phase 3-4 +2, phase 2 +1, phase 1 +0.5). The trial component is capped at 30.
- Each literature item scores by design (Cochrane review 5, meta-analysis 4, systematic review 3, RCT 3, clinical trial publication 2, curated reference 1.5, other PubMed record 1). The literature component is capped at 30.
- The existing evidence tier adds 15 (A / Strong), 10 (B / Moderate), 5 (C / Preliminary) or 0 (D / Anecdotal).
- Agents approved for any indication (max clinical phase 4) add 5, because an approved agent has an established safety profile that lowers the barrier to repurposing trials.
- The score ranks what has been studied, not what works. It does not read effect sizes or directions of effect.
Registered clinical trials
No registered trial links Norepinephrine to Alcohol Use Disorder in the current OSMF trial extract.
Published literature
- Clinical trial publication Disulfiram treatment for cocaine dependence in methadone-maintained opioid addictsPetrakis IL, Carroll KM, Nich C et al. · Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2000 · PMID 10723850
- Clinical trial publication The association of buspirone and its metabolite 1-pyrimidinylpiperazine in the remission of comorbid anxiety with depressive features and alcohol dependencyTollefson GD, Lancaster SP, Montague-Clouse J · Psychopharmacology bulletin · 1991 · PMID 1924664
Mechanism and notes
Recorded mechanism or class: agonist.
OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in DGIdb, in this case via the biomarker or target ADRA2C. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.
Frequently asked questions
Is Norepinephrine approved for Alcohol Use Disorder?
Norepinephrine has reached the approved stage (maximum clinical phase 4) for at least one indication, so its use in Alcohol Use Disorder would be drug repurposing rather than first-in-human development. This does not mean it is approved for Alcohol Use Disorder. Approval status for the specific indication should always be confirmed with the relevant regulator and prescribing information.
Is Norepinephrine in clinical trials for Alcohol Use Disorder?
No registered clinical trial in this database tests Norepinephrine specifically in Alcohol Use Disorder. The evidence below comes from published literature only, so any clinical signal has not yet been tested prospectively against this condition in a registered study.
What does the evidence show for Norepinephrine in Alcohol Use Disorder?
The record for Norepinephrine in Alcohol Use Disorder rests on 2 publications without a registered trial. This is a lead for hypothesis generation, not evidence of efficacy. OSMF's existing evidence tier for this pair is A (Strong), derived from the strength of the disease association recorded in DGIdb, in this case via the biomarker or target ADRA2C. The tier describes how well the drug-disease link is documented, not how well the drug works.
Cite this page
Data: ClinicalTrials.gov, PubMed, Open Targets, ChEMBL, DGIdb and the OSMF therapeutic agent database. Last updated 2026-07-05. Page built 2026-10-07.