title: Experience with St John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) in children under 12 years with symptoms of depression and psychovegetative disturbances.
abstract: The value of an extract of Hypericum perforatum (St John's wort) for children with mild to moderate depressive symptoms was investigated for the first time in a multi-centre post-marketing surveillance study. One hundred and one children under 12 years were treated for a minimum of 4 weeks with an extension to 6 weeks with parental consent and medical practitioner recommendation. the dosage used ranged from 300 to 1800 mg per day. Compliance, tolerability and efficacy were assessed every 2 weeks by physicians and parents. Based on the data available for analysis, the number of physicians rating effectiveness as 'good' or 'excellent' was 72% after 2 weeks, 97% after 4 weeks and 100% after 6 weeks. The ratings by parents were very similar. There was, however, an increasing amount of missing data at each assessment point with the final evaluation including only 76% of the initial sample. Tolerability was good and no adverse events were reported. The results of this study suggest that Hypericum is a potentially safe and effective treatment for children with symptoms of depression.
authors.affiliation: Lichtwer Pharma AG, Wallenroder Strasse 8-10, D-13435 Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: W D
authors.initials: WD
authors.lastname: Hübner
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kirste
mesh_terms: D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003863:Depression / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020902:Hypericum / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D010349:Patient Compliance; D008517:Phytotherapy; D010946:Plants, Medicinal; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000928:Antidepressive Agents