Confidence in St John's wort misplaced?
St John's wort may be less effective as a treatment for depression than previously assumed, a new study has revealed.
UK researchers conducted two analyses, one of 15 studies published up
to 2001 and another that included three additional studies that were
published more recently. In both analyses, St John’s wort was shown
to be more effective than placebo in treating depression. However, the
analysis that included the more recent, larger studies suggested that
St John’s wort had less of an effect than shown previously (Journal
of Clinical Psychiatry 2004;65:611).
David Taylor, chief pharmacist at South London and Maudsley NHS Trust
and one of the study authors, explained: “This analysis revealed
two related factors: that there is significant publication bias towards ‘positive’ studies
of St John’s wort and that apparent effect size increases as study
size decreases.” He added: “Our confidence in St John’s
wort as an effective antidepressant is probably misplaced. St John’s
wort can still be recommended, but pharmacists should be aware that recent
relatively large and well conducted studies have suggested that St John’s
wort is little or no better than placebo.” |
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