[Treatment of dysthymia]

Hippocrates described both melancholy and dysthymia. An episode of mild depression lasting up to 2 years, which does not make patients unfit to work, although the repressive irritative mood disorder does reduce their ability to work. Severe depressive moods can develop from dysthymia. While dysthymia responds to antidepressant treatment similarly to depressive episodes, treatment must be carried out for a considerably longer period. The dosage dose not differ from that for severe depressive episodes. A few examples of cases are presented from the speaker's own cases to illustrate how well they responded to treatment with St.-John's wort.