St. John's Wort

Double-blind randomized controlled trial comparing St. John's Wort, sertraline (Zoloft), and placebo in 336 patients with major depression. Patients received 8 weeks of active treatment with follow-up assessments, and responders continued treatment for an additional 18 weeks to evaluate maintenance efficacy and safety profiles.

Multi-center double-blind, placebo-controlled trial enrolling 200 patients nationally (20 at VUMC) with moderate to severe depression. Participants received 8 weeks of St. John's Wort or placebo, with responders continuing the herb for 6 months and non-responders receiving antidepressant medication to ensure all participants received active treatment.

Systematic review of 8 high-quality randomized controlled trials found St. John's Wort more effective than placebo for mild to moderate depression, with response rates up to 81% compared to 26% for placebo. Laboratory monitoring of 386 patients showed no changes in blood cell counts, liver function, or kidney function, with no serious adverse events detected.

Meta-analysis of 35 randomized controlled trials involving 6,993 patients demonstrated St. John's Wort was superior to placebo with a relative risk of 1.53 for treatment response. When compared to SSRIs in mild to moderate depression, St. John's Wort showed equivalent efficacy with significantly fewer adverse events (odds ratio 0.67), and lower discontinuation rates compared to SSRI treatment.

Analysis of 14 clinical trials with 2,270 patients with major depressive disorder found St. John's Wort produced comparable response and remission rates to SSRIs as measured by Hamilton Depression Rating Scale scores over 6-26 week treatment periods. The supplement demonstrated favorable effects compared to both SSRIs and placebo for reducing depression severity.

Systematic review of 8 high-quality randomized controlled trials found St. John's Wort more effective than placebo for mild to moderate depression, with response rates up to 81% compared to 26% for placebo. Laboratory monitoring of 386 patients showed no changes in blood cell counts, liver function, or kidney function, with no serious adverse events detected.

Meta-analysis of 35 randomized controlled trials involving 6,993 patients demonstrated St. John's Wort was superior to placebo with a relative risk of 1.53 for treatment response. When compared to SSRIs in mild to moderate depression, St. John's Wort showed equivalent efficacy with significantly fewer adverse events (odds ratio 0.67), and lower discontinuation rates compared to SSRI treatment.

Analysis of 14 clinical trials with 2,270 patients with major depressive disorder found St. John's Wort produced comparable response and remission rates to SSRIs as measured by Hamilton Depression Rating Scale scores over 6-26 week treatment periods. The supplement demonstrated favorable effects compared to both SSRIs and placebo for reducing depression severity.

Meta-analysis of 35 randomized controlled trials involving 6,993 patients demonstrated St. John's Wort was superior to placebo with a relative risk of 1.53 for treatment response. When compared to SSRIs in mild to moderate depression, St. John's Wort showed equivalent efficacy with significantly fewer adverse events (odds ratio 0.67), and lower discontinuation rates compared to SSRI treatment.

Analysis of 14 clinical trials with 2,270 patients with major depressive disorder found St. John's Wort produced comparable response and remission rates to SSRIs as measured by Hamilton Depression Rating Scale scores over 6-26 week treatment periods. The supplement demonstrated favorable effects compared to both SSRIs and placebo for reducing depression severity.