High dose Vitamin C linked to fast recovery in COVID-19 patient: Case Report

USA: A recent case study describes the first case of a COVID 19 patient with acute respiratory distress syndrome who recovered early following the intravenous administration of high-dose vitamin C. The case is published in the American Journal of Case Reports.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues to spread with confirmed cases in more than 200 countries. Despite this, there are no proven therapeutic options for its treatment. Niraj Parikh, Department of Cardiovascular Disease, McLaren-Flint/Michigan State University, Flint, MI, USA, and colleagues report a case of COVID-19 patient with acute respiratory distress syndrome who was treated with high-dose vitamin C infusion and was the first case to have early recovery from the disease at their institute.

The case in question is of a 74-year-old woman who was presented to the emergency department with fever, cough, and shortness of breath. She had no recent sick contacts or travel history. Her vital signs were normal except for oxygen saturation of 87% and bilateral rhonchi on lung auscultation. Chest radiography revealed air space opacity in the right upper lobe, suspicious for pneumonia.

A nasopharyngeal swab for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 came back positive while the patient was in the airborne-isolation unit. Laboratory data showed lymphopenia and elevated lactate dehydrogenase, ferritin, and interleukin-6. The patient was initially started on oral hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin. On day 6, she developed ARDS and septic shock, for which mechanical ventilation and pressor support were started, along with the infusion of high-dose intravenous vitamin C. The patient improved clinically and was able to be taken off mechanical ventilation within 5 days.

"This report highlights the potential benefits of high-dose intravenous vitamin C in critically ill COVID-19 patients in terms of rapid recovery and shortened length of mechanical ventilation and ICU stay. Further studies will elaborate on the efficacy of intravenous vitamin C in critically ill COVID-19," concluded the authors.

The case report, "Unusual Early Recovery of a Critical COVID-19 Patient After Administration of Intravenous Vitamin C," is published in the American Journal of Case Reports.

DOI: 10.12659/AJCR.925521