Example: Atomoxetine is believed to increase norepinephrine in the brain, to treat ADHD. What do you mean, believed? Then how was it successfully developed to do that in the first place, if the mechanisms of action to effect that change are not known?
Apparently this is not uncommon in medication. How is this possible?
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We generally only have an “educated guess” as to what causes a particular condition (particularly psychiatric conditions like ADHD). In the case of norepinephrine, it was believed to be a possible way to treat ADHD because most stimulants (that act on dopamine) also acted on norepinephrine. Ultimately they didn’t care of Atomoxetine increased norepinephrine levels, they cared if it treated ADHD symptoms. So they did trials to determine if it treated ADHD symptoms, and may not have had enough evidence to specifically prove that it increased norepinephrine levels.
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