Report from the 163rd annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association, New Orleans LA, May 22-26, 2010 – Almost a decade ago, a large double-blind multicentre trial reported that the efficacy of St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum) extract and an active comparator (sertraline 50-100 mg/day) was not significantly different from placebo in the treatment of major depression (Hypericum Depression Trial Study Group. JAMA 2002; 287: 1807-1814; free full text athttp://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/287/14/1807). A full response occurred in 23.9% of patients in the St. John’s wort group, 24.8% in the sertraline group, and 31.9% in the placebo group.