title: Effect of Xiaoyaosan on major depressive disorder.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of Xiaoyaosan (XYS) for treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD) and to review the studies on antidepressant mechanisms of XYS.
  
  
  METHODS
  The China Knowledge Resource Integrated Database (1998-2014), VIP Journal Integration Platform (1989-2009), and PubMed (1950-2014) were used to search for and collect scientific publications related to XYS and MDD. Clinical trials for "MDD" and "xiaoyao" were screened. Papers that used the original prescription of XYS for treatment and in combination with Western medicines were included, while papers describing modified XYS were excluded. Four investigators read and screened the resulting publications independently, evaluated the associated scientific results and evidence.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no conclusive results to support the efficacy of XYS for treatment of MDD, owing to limited sample sizes, flaws in blinding and randomization, and lack of multi-centered clinical trials. Among the experimental studies on the effects of XYS possible involvement of 5-hydroxytryptamine, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis function, and neuroinflammation were possibly involved demonstrated.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The effectiveness of XYS for treatment of MDD is uncertain.
authors.affiliation: Traditional Chinese Medicine Integrated Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong China.
authors.forename: Lin-Lin
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Jing
authors.affiliation: The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510515 China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Xia
authors.initials: XX
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510515 China.
authors.forename: Zhi-Ping
authors.initials: ZP
authors.lastname: Lv
authors.affiliation: The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510515 China ; Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong China.
authors.forename: Xue-Gang
authors.initials: XG
authors.lastname: Sun