The efficacy of intravenous vitamin infusions

Key Benefits and Mechanisms of Action of Vitamin Infusions

Vitamin infusions have become a popular approach to optimizing health and managing a variety of medical conditions. By bypassing the digestive system, this method allows direct and rapid absorption of nutrients and vitamins into the bloodstream, offering maximum biological availability. Although widely adopted in the field of preventive, functional and anti-aging medicine, scientific evidence concerning the efficacy of these infusions still remains a matter of debate. This article aims to review the latest clinical studies on the efficacy of vitamin infusions and their potential applications.

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Enhanced Nutrient Absorption with Vitamin Infusions

An intravenous infusion delivers high concentrations of nutrients directly into the bloodstream, reaching plasma levels impossible to achieve orally. This is particularly relevant for substances such as vitamin C, B-complex, NAD+ and glutathione, which play crucial roles in energy metabolism, immune support and the fight against oxidative stress.

Clinical benefits

Optimized absorption:

Intravenous infusions of vitamins deliver close to 100% bioavailability, whereas oral supplements are subject to digestion and intestinal absorption, often with limited efficacy.

Rapid effects:

Patients can experience almost immediate improvements in energy levels, mental clarity and overall well-being.

Customizable dose:

Treatments can be adjusted to suit specific patient needs, for example, by increasing the dose for particular therapeutic requirements.

Clinical Efficacy of High-Dose Vitamin C Infusions in Serious Illnesses

Vitamin C infusions are widely studied in the treatment of acute and chronic illnesses. A recent meta-analysis evaluated the efficacy of intravenous vitamin C in patients with sepsis and septic shock. This study showed a significant improvement in organ dysfunction scores (SOFA score), however without a reduction in mortality, suggesting that the beneficial effect of vitamin C may be more relevant for clinical stabilization than for complete cure (SpringerOpen).

In oncology, clinical trials have examined the impact of high-dose intravenous vitamin C on patients with advanced cancers. Studies have shown that the therapy is generally well tolerated, with few serious side effects. However, although no significant anti-tumor responses were observed in monotherapy studies, some exceptional cases reported complete tumor regression and prolonged survival in patients with advanced cancers (BioMed Central).

How Vitamin Infusions Improve Quality of Life and Well-Being

Vitamin C infusions are increasingly used in palliative care for cancer patients due to their high safety profile and ability to improve quality of life. A retrospective study showed that patients receiving vitamin C infusions reported a significant reduction in symptoms of fatigue, improved appetite and reduced sleep disturbance and depression (BioMed Central).

Safety and Tolerance of Vitamin Infusions in Medical Practice

Vitamin infusions are generally safe and well tolerated when administered under medical supervision. However, side effects such as electrolyte imbalances or local reactions at the injection site can occur, particularly with high doses of certain vitamins such as vitamin C. It is crucial to assess the patient’s medical history, particularly with regard to renal function, before initiating high-dose treatment.

List of studies about oral and parental administration

Studies employing oral supplementation

Reference	Study Design	Group	Treatment	No. of Participants	Main Findings
Castro-Marrero et al., 2015 [27]	Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial	Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients	Oral CoQ10 (200 mg/day) + NADH (20 mg/day) for 8 weeks	73	Significant improvement of fatigue showing a reduction in fatigue impact scale total score (p < 0.05)
Castro-Marrero et al., 2021 [28]	Prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial	Individuals with Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS)	Oral CoQ10 (200 mg/day) + NADH (20 mg/day) for 12 weeks	207	Significant reduction in cognitive fatigue perception and overall fatigue impact scale (FIS-40) score (p < 0.001 and p = 0.022)
Castro-Marrero et al., 2016 [29]	Randomized, controlled, double-blind trial	Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients	50 mg of CoQ10 and 5 mg of NADH twice daily for 8 weeks	80	Significant reduction in perception of fatigue through all follow-up visits in active group versus placebo (p = 0.03)
Iwase et al., 2016 [22]	Multi-institutional, randomized, exploratory trial	Breast cancer patients	Inner Power (IP) oral supplement containing branched-chain amino acids (2500 mg), coenzyme Q10 (30 mg), and L-carnitine (50 mg), once daily for 21 days	57	Changes in the worst level of fatigue, global fatigue score (GFS), and current feeling of fatigue were significantly different between the intervention and control groups
Mizuno et al., 2008 [30]	Double-blinded, placebo-controlled, three crossover design	Healthy volunteers	Oral coenzyme Q10 (100 or 300 mg/d) or placebo administration for 8 days	17	Significant alleviation of subjective fatigue sensation measured on a visual analogue scale in the 300-mg coenzyme Q10–administered group
Mizuno et al., 2020 [23]	Double-blind, placebo-controlled study	Healthy volunteers	Ubiquinol-10 (100 or 150 mg/d) or placebo administration for 12 weeks	104	Improvements in subjective levels of fatigue sensation and sleepiness after cognitive tasks
Gokbel et al., 2010 [31]	Randomized, double-blind, crossover study	Healthy and sedentary men	100 mg/day CoQ10 for two 8-week periods	15	Mean power increased only with CoQ10 supplementation during the fifth Wingate test (WT5)
Sanoobar et al., 2016 [32]	Randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial	Multiple sclerosis patients	500 mg/day CoQ10 for 12 weeks	48	Significant decrease of fatigue severity scale (FSS) in CoQ10 group during the intervention (p = 0.001)
Cordero et al., 2013 [16]	Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial	Fibromyalgia (FM) patients	CoQ10 supplementation (300 mg/day) for 40 days	20	Prominent reduction in pain (p < 0.001), fatigue, and morning tiredness (p < 0.01)

Studies employing parenteral administration.

Reference	Study Design	Group	Treatment	No. of Participants	Main Findings
Suh et al., 2012 [79]	Randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical trial	Healthy volunteers	Single intravenous treatment of either vitamin C (10 g) or normal saline	141	Fatigue scores decreased significantly (p = 0.004) in the vitamin C group after two hours and remained lower for one day
Takahashi et al., 2012 [76]	Multicentre prospective observational study	Cancer patients	Up to 50 g IVC twice a week, for 4 weeks + oral vitamin C 2–4 g/day	60	Significant improvements in fatigue scores at 2 weeks of IVC therapy (p < 0.01)
Yeom et al., 2007 [77]	Prospective Observational Study	Cancer patients	10 g IVC administered twice with a 3-day interval + oral vitamin C 4 g/day for a week	39	Patients reported significantly lower scores for fatigue (p < 0.05)
Vollbracht et al., 2011 [78]	Epidemiological, multicentre cohort study with parallel groups	Cancer patients	i.v. vitamin C (Pascorbin® 7.5 g) additional to standard tumor therapy for at least 4 weeks	125	Significant reduction in fatigue symptoms
Ou et al., 2020 [75]	Single-centre, phase II, randomized clinical trial	Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) patients	1 g/kg/day IVC with modulated electrohyperthermia (mEHT) plus best supportive care (BSC), three times a week for 25 treatments	97	Significant reduction in fatigue symptoms (QLQ-C30)
Vollbracht et al., 2018 [80]	Multicentre prospective observational study	Patients with allergy-related respiratory or cutaneous indications	i.v. vitamin C (Pascorbin® 7.5 g/50 mL) in 100 mL NaCl 0.9%	71	Significant reduction in fatigue symptoms
Jeon et al., 2016 [81]	Single-centre, randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical trial	Patients undergoing laparoscopic colectomy	IVC 50 mg/kg body weight or placebo; single application after induction of anesthesia	97	No significant differences in fatigue score 2, 6, and 24 hours post-operation
Aziz et al., 2021 [82]	Prospective cohort study	Patients with liver cirrhosis due to chronic hepatitis C	Vitamin D3 (200,000 IU IM single dose)	50	Fatigue severity scale (FSS) and fatigue impact scale (FIS) scores improved significantly after administration of vitamin D3
Brass et al., 2001 [83]	Placebo-controlled, double-blinded, randomized study	Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD)	Intravenous L-carnitine 10, 20, and 40 mg/kg or placebo at the conclusion of each thrice-weekly dialysis session for 24 weeks	150	Significant improvement in the fatigue domain of the Kidney Disease Questionnaire (KDQ)
Zhang et al., 2014 [18]	Randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study	Metabolic syndrome (MetS) patients	4 g/day of intravenous L-carnitine for 7 days; control group received saline	15	Significant reduction in physical fatigue (p < 0.001) and fatigue severity (p < 0.001)
Massey et al., 2007 [84]	Open-label clinical trial	Therapy-resistant Fibromyalgia (FM) patients	Intravenous nutrient therapy (IVNT) once per week for 8 weeks	7	60% reduction in pain (p = 0.005) and 80% decrease in fatigue (p = 0.005)
Costantini et al., 2013 [17]	Pilot study	Multiple sclerosis patients	High-dose thiamine 600–1500 mg/day orally or 100 mg/mL once a week parenterally for 20 days	15	Statistically significant relief of fatigue symptoms

Studies employing oral supplementation

Studies employing parenteral administration.

Conclusions on the efficacy of vitamin infusions

Intravenous infusions of vitamins and nutrients show promising potential for improving quality of life and supporting patients with chronic or acute illnesses. Although the data are encouraging, current scientific evidence suggests that these therapies are often more effective when used in conjunction with other medical treatments rather than as monotherapy. Future rigorous clinical research is needed to establish standardized protocols and identify which patient populations will benefit most from these interventions.