September 2014 Vol. 6 Issue 9 Study demonstrates promising results for common naturopathic treatment Mikirova N, Casciari J, Riordan N, Hunninghake R. Clinical experience with intravenous administration of ascorbic acid: achievable levels in blood for different states of inflammation and disease in cancer patients. J Transl Med. 2013;11(1):191.Riordan HD, Hunninghake RB, Riordan NH, et a.: Intravenous ascorbic acid: protocol for its application and use. P R Health Sci J. 2003;22(3):287-290.Cohen JI. N Engl J Med. 2000;343(7):481-492.Rickinson AB, Kieff E. Epstein-Barr virus. In: Knipe DM, Howley PM, eds. Fields Virology. 4th ed. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; Balfour HH Jr, Holman CJ, Hokanson KM, et al. A prospective clinical study of Epstein-Barr virus and host interactions during acute infectious mononucleosis. J Infect Dis. 2005;192(9):1505-1512.Luzuriaga K, Sullivan JL. N Engl J Med. 2010;362(21):1993-2000.Okano M, Gross, T. Acute or chronic life-threatening diseases associated with Epstein-barr virus infection.
Am J Med Sci. 2012;343(6):483-489.Ebell MH. Epstein-Barr virus infectious mononucleosis. CD8+ T-cell deficiency, Epstein-Barr virus infection, vitamin D deficiency, and steps to autoimmunity: a unifying hypothesis. Autoimmune Dis. 2012;2012:189096.Hess RD. Routine Ebstein-Barr virus diagnostics from the laboratory perspective: still challenging after 35 years. 2004;42(8):3381-3387.Okano M, Kawa K, Kimura H, et al. Proposed guidelines for diagnosing chronic active Epstein-Barr virus infection. 2005;80(1):64-69.Häusler M, Scheithauer S, Ritter K, Kleines M. Molecular diagnosis of Epstein Barr virus. Expert Rev Mol Diagn. 2003;3(1):81-92.Gulley ML. Molecular diagnosis of Epstein-Barr virus-related diseases. 2001;3(1):1-10.Odumade OA, Hogquist KA, Balfour HH Jr. Progress and problems in understanding and managing primary Epstein-Barr virus infections. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2011;24(1):193-209.Thorley-Lawson DA, Poodry CA. Identification and isolation of the main component (gp350-gp220) of Epstein-Barr virus responsible for generating neutralizing antibodies in vivo.
1982;43(2):730-736.Okano M. Therapeutic approaches for severe Epstein-Barr virus infection. 1997;14(2):109-119.Tynell E, Aurelius E, Brandell A, et al. Acyclovir and prednisolone treatment of acute infectious mononucleosis: a multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. J Infect Dis. 1996;174(2):324-331.Yenamandra SP, Hellman U, Kempkes B, et al. Epstein-Barr virus encoded EBNA-3 binds to vitamin D receptor and blocks activation of its target genes. Cell Mol Life Sci. 2010;67(24):4249-4256.Cantorna MT, Yu S, Bruce D. The paradoxical effects of vitamin D on type 1 mediated immunity. Mol Aspects Med. 2008;29(6):369-375.Hergenhahn M, Soto U, Weninger A, et al. The chemopreventive compound curcumin is an efficient inhibitor of Epstein-Barr virus BZLF1 transcription in Raji DR-LUC cells. Iwatsuki K, Akihisa T, Tokuda H, et al. Lucidenic acids P and Q, methyl lucidenate P, and other triterpenoids from the fungus Ganoderma lucidum and their inhibitory effects on Epstein-Barr virus activation.
2003;66(12):1582-1585.Chen JY, Chang CY, Feng PH, Chu CC, So EC, Hu ML. Plasma vitamin C is lower in postherpetic neuralgia patients and administration of vitamin C reduces spontaneous pain but not brush-evoked pain. 2009;25(7):562-569.Furuya A, Uozaki M, Yamasaki H, Arakawa T, Arita M, Koyama AH. Antiviral effects of ascorbic acid and dehydroascorbic acids in vitro. Int J Mol Med. 2008;22(4):541-545.Schencking M1, Vollbracht C, Weiss G, Lebert J, Biller A, Goyvaerts B, Kraft K.Author information1Department for Complementary and Integrative Medicine, Heart-Jesus Hospital, Dernbach, Germany. m.schencking@krankenhaus-dernbach.deAbstractBACKGROUND: Vitamin C is an immune-relevant micronutrient, which is depleted in viral infections and this deficiency seems to play a critical role in the pathogenesis of herpes infections and in the development of postherpetic neuralgia. The objective of this observational multicenter study was to evaluate the utilization, safety and efficacy of intravenously administrated vitamin C in patients with shingles.
MATERIAL/METHODS: Between April 2009 and December 2010 16 general practitioners recorded data of 67 participants with symptomatic herpes zoster who received vitamin C intravenously (Pascorbin® 7.5 g/50 ml) for approximately 2 weeks in addition to standard treatment. The assessment of pain (VAS) and the dermatologic symptoms of shingles such as hemorrhagic lesions and the number of efflorescences were investigated in a follow-up observation phase of up to 12 weeks.RESULTS: Mean declines of pain scores (VAS), number of affected dermatomes and efflorescences, and the presence of hemorrhagic vesicles between the baseline and follow-up assessments at 2 and 12 weeks were statistically significant. Overall, 6.4% of the participants experienced post-herpetic neuralgia. Common complaints such as general fatigue and impaired concentration also improved during the study. The effects and the tolerability of the treatment were evaluated positively by the physicians. The risk of developing PHN was reduced.
CONCLUSIONS: The data presented here provide evidence that concomitant use of intravenously administered ascorbic acid may have beneficial effects on herpes zoster-associated pain, dermatologic findings and accompanying common complaints. To confirm our findings, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical studies are necessary.PMID: 22460093 PMCID: PMC3560828 [Indexed for MEDLINE] Free PMC ArticlePublication typesClinical TrialMulticenter StudyResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tMeSH termsAscorbic Acid/administration & dosageAscorbic Acid/adverse effectsAscorbic Acid/pharmacologyAscorbic Acid/therapeutic use*Attention/drug effectsFatigue/etiologyFemaleHemorrhage/etiologyHerpes Zoster/complicationsHerpes Zoster/drug therapy*Herpes Zoster/virologyHerpesvirus 3, Human/drug effectsHerpesvirus 3, Human/physiologyHumansInjections, IntravenousMaleMiddle AgedPain MeasurementProspective StudiesTreatment OutcomeSubstanceAscorbic AcidFull Text SourcesInternational Scientific Literature, Ltd. - PDFEurope PubMed CentralPubMed CentralPubMed Central CanadaMedicalShingles - MedlinePlus Health InformationVitamin C - MedlinePlus Health InformationMiscellaneousSodium ascorbate - Hazardous