St. John’s wort extract LI160 for the treatment of depression with atypical features – A double-blind, randomized, and placebo-controlled trial

2010 ◽  
Vol 44 (12) ◽  
pp. 760-767 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcus Mannel ◽  
Ulrike Kuhn ◽  
Ulrich Schmidt ◽  
Michael Ploch ◽  
Harald Murck
Keyword(s):  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
St John’S Wort ◽  
St John's Wort ◽  
Atypical Features ◽  
Treatment Of Depression

scholarly journals Results of a Pilot Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial in Primary and Secondary Raynaud's Phenomenon with St. John's Wort: Detecting Changes in Angiogenic Cytokines When RP Improves

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Déanne Malenfant ◽  
Kelly Summers ◽  
Shannon Seney ◽  
Donna McBain ◽  
Lisa Petrlich ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Raynaud’S Phenomenon ◽  
Serum Levels ◽  
Raynaud's Phenomenon ◽  
Post Treatment ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Treatment Groups ◽  
St John’S Wort ◽  
St John's Wort ◽  
Angiogenic Cytokines

Objectives.To perform a 6-week double-blind RCT in Raynaud's phenomenon (RP) comparing the plant extract St. John's Wort (SJW) to placebo. Methods. RP patients having at least 7 attacks per week were stratified by primary and secondary RP and within secondary by systemic sclerosis or other connective tissue disease. Subjects completed a daily standardized diary recording all RP attacks (frequency, duration and severity). Serum levels of 18 inflammatory and angiogenic cytokines were measured pre- and post-treatment. Results. Eighteen patients completed the study; 8 received SJW and 10 placebo. The decrease in mean number of attacks per day was 0.75 with SJW and 1.01 with placebo, P=0.06. Attack duration and severity were not different between groups. Cytokine analyses demonstrated no between-groups differences. Combining treatment groups, those with >50% improvement in frequency of attacks yielded a significant increase in E-selectin (P=0.049), MMP-9 (P=0.011), G-CSF (P=0.02), and VEGF (P=0.012) pre- versus post-treatment. A ≥50% improvement in severity of attacks corresponded to a significant increase in levels of sVCAM-1 (P=0.003), sICAM-1 (P=0.007), and MCP-1 (P=0.004). Conclusions. There were no clinical or biomarker benefit of SJW versus placebo in RP. However, combining all patients, there were changes in some cytokines that may be further investigated.

scholarly journals The use of St John's Wort in the treatment of depression

2000 ◽  
Vol 24 (6) ◽  
pp. 232-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Maidment
Keyword(s):  
Severe Depression ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Medline Search ◽  
St John’S Wort ◽  
St John's Wort ◽  
Moderate Depression ◽  
Treatment Of Depression ◽  
Equivalent Efficacy ◽  
Therapeutic Doses ◽  
Published Paper

Aims and MethodTo assess and update the data on the use of St John's Wort as an antidepressant. A Medline search was conducted for the period January 1985 to December 1999. The search included other aspects of the usage of St John's Wort, such as side-effects, mechanism of action and drug interactions.ResultsWhile two overviews and four clinical trials have recently been published, there is little data comparing St John's Wort against therapeutic doses of standard antidepressants.Clinical ImplicationsSt John's Wort is generally well tolerated, and an effective antidepressant. The current evidence indicates that it is less effective than standard antidepressants for severe depression. While some of the available data suggests equivalent efficacy as subtherapeutic doses of tricyclic antidepressants in mild to moderate depression this requires further confirmation. One recently published paper suggests that St John's Wort has equivalent efficacy to fluoxetine in mild to moderate depression. The appropriate therapeutic dose needs clarification.

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