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
Substances Data BankL-Ascorbic Acid - Hazardous Substances Data BankRefresh page: Search for the page again by clicking the Refresh button. The timeout may have occurred due to Internet congestion. Check spelling: Check that you typed the Web page address correctly. The address may have been mistyped. Access from a link: If there is a link to the page you are looking for, try accessing the page from that link. Contact website: You may want to contact the website administrator to make sure the Web page still exists. You can do this by using the e-mail address or phone number listed on the website home page. Technical Information (for support personnel) Error Code 10061: Connection refused Background: When the gateway or proxy server contacted the upstream (Web) server, the connection was refused. This usually results from trying to connect to a service that is inactive on the upstream server.Skip to Main Content Try our beta test site Intravenous Vitamin C in the Treatment of Viral Infection, Especially in the Treatment of Shingles (168)
Chronic viral infections induce oxidative stress that can cause a number of concomitant diseases, e.g. cardio-vascular diseases or metabolic disorders. Therefore, a sufficient treatment of oxidative stress may be of benefit for the patient to prevent further diseases. Shingles (herpes zoster infection) have been successfully treated with antioxidative substances like high-dose vitamin C for ages. Not only the acute symptoms can be diminished by high-dose vitamin C. Even long-term sequelae, like painful post-herpetic neuropathy, may be mitigated or even fully avoided. Observational Model: CohortTime Perspective: Prospective PASCORBIN 7.5g in the Treatment of Viral Infection, Especially Varicella Zoster Infection: An Observational Cohort Study Drug Information available for: Change of Pain Measured by VAS [ Time Frame: visit 1 - 3 ] December 2010 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure) Ages Eligible for Study: 18 Years and older (Adult, Senior)
Sexes Eligible for Study: Due to the design of an Observational Cohort Study, no inclusion or exclusion criteria are named. The included patient group is described under "Cohort / Group". acute viral infection (especially herpes zoster) eligible for add-on therapy with vitamin C willingness to provide pseudonymized data to the Sponsor Choosing to participate in a study is an important personal decision. Talk with your doctor and family members or friends about deciding to join a study. To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the Contacts provided below. For general information, see Learn About Clinical Studies. Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00921934 Praxis Dr. Schencking, Rheinstr. Ransbach-Baumbach, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany, 56235 Pascoe Pharmazeutische Praeparate GmbH Other Study ID Numbers: 168 A 08 VC Keywords provided by Pascoe Pharmazeutische Praeparate GmbH: