Safety and effectiveness of high-dose vitamin C in patients with COVID-19: a randomized open-label clinical trial

Abstract

Background Vitamin C is an essential water-soluble nutrient that functions as a key antioxidant and has been proven to be effective for boosting immunity. In this study, we aimed to assess the efficacy of adding high-dose intravenous vitamin C (HDIVC) to the regimens for patients with severe COVID-19 disease. Methods An open-label, randomized, and controlled trial was conducted on patients with severe COVID-19 infection. The case and control treatment groups each consisted of 30 patients. The control group received lopinavir/ritonavir and hydroxychloroquine and the case group received HDIVC (6 g daily) added to the same regimen. Results There were no statistically significant differences between two groups with respect to age and gender, laboratory results, and underlying diseases. The mean body temperature was significantly lower in the case group on the 3rd day of hospitalization (p = 0.001). Peripheral capillary oxygen saturations (SpO2) measured at the 3rd day of hospitalization was also higher in the case group receiving HDIVC (p = 0.014). The median length of hospitalization in the case group was significantly longer than the control group (8.5 days vs. 6.5 days) (p = 0.028). There was no significant difference in SpO2 levels at discharge time, the length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay, and mortality between the two groups. Conclusions We did not find significantly better outcomes in the group who were treated with HDIVC in addition to the main treatment regimen at discharge. Trial registration irct.ir (IRCT20200411047025N1), April 14, 2020

Therapeutic potential of megadose vitamin C to reverse organ dysfunction in sepsis and COVID‐19

“…The findings that plasma vitamin C levels are low in COVID-19 patients (Chiscano-Camon, Ruiz-Rodriguez, Ruiz-Sanmartin, Roca & Ferrer, 2020), and that vitamin C lowers expression of angiotensin converting enzyme 2, the entry point for SARS-CoV-2 into cells (Ivanov, Goc, Ivanova, Niedzwiecki & Rath, 2021), further indicate that it may have beneficial actions in COVID-19. Intravenous vitamin C (1.5-14.0 g) has been investigated in COVID-19 patients with mild beneficial effects (Jamalimoghadamsiahkali et al, 2021;Zhao et al, 2021), but the effects of mega-doses have not been studied.…”

Clinical Management of COVID-19: A Review of Pharmacological Treatment Options

“…High-dose CQ did not have a better effect on viral load than low CQ dose. [103] AZM; open-label, randomized multicenter Study of randomized 397 hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19 to either receive (214) or not (183) receive AZM in addition to standard treatment which included HCQ.…”

“…A retrospective study of 76 patients reported that the use of vitamin C in COVID-19 patients was associated with modest clinical benefits, including reductions in 28-day mortality and improvements in oxygen support status [179]. However, more elaborate clinical studies did not demonstrate therapeutic benefits of highdose vitamin C in patients with COVID-19 [180][181][182][183]. Similarly, vitamin D supplementation may be of potential benefit in ameliorating the effects of COVID-19, but there are currently no clinical studies to support this suggestion [184].…”

Importancia del metabolismo y consumo de las vitaminas D y C durante la infección por SARS-CoV-2

“…El suplemento con vitamina C se ha utilizado en pacientes con COVID-19 desde 6 hasta 24 g/ día por vía intravenosa (IV) durante una semana, mostrando seguridad y varios grados de eficacia (74,75). Las dosis recomendadas de vitamina C para esta enfermedad respiratoria, oscila entre 1-3 g/día (76)(77)(78).…”