Vitamin Therapy

the use of vitamin preparations for therapeutic purposes in certain diseases and also in the absence of or inadequate amounts of vitamins in the body (replacement therapy). Vitamin therapy is also prescribed to satisfy the increased vitamin requirements of the body during certain physiological states, for example, during pregnancy and breast feeding.

Vitamin A is used in treating such conditions as various disturbances of the cornification of the skin, diseases of the digestive system, and night blindness, xerophthalmia, and other diseases of the eyes.

Vitamin B₁ (thiamine) is prescribed for beriberi, neuritides, ulcers, gastritides, thyrotoxicosis, occupational intoxications, diseases of the cardiovascular system (angiospasms and others) and liver, and diabetes.

Vitamin B₂ (riboflavin) is used for seborrhea, poorly healing wounds and trophic ulcers, mastitides and cracked nipples in nursing women, blepharitis, keratitides, night blindness, diseases of the digestive tract, and other diseases.

Vitamin PP (nicotinic acid) exerts a therapeutic effect in pellagra, certain psychoses, coronary atherosclerosis, vascular spasms, ulcers, and poisoning with lead, benzol, arsenic, or mercury.

Vitamin B₆ (pyridoxine) is used in toxicoses of pregnant women and diseases of the nervous system, digestive tract, and skin.

Vitamin B₃ (pantothenic acid) is prescribed in polyneuritides, intestinal atonia, bronchitides, bronchopneumonias, allergic diseases, and other conditions.

Vitamin B_c (folic acid) is used to treat certain disturbances of blood formation (deficiency macrocytic anemia in adults and children), sprue, and chronic diseases of the intestinal tract.

Vitamin B₁₂ (cyanocobalamin) exhibits a therapeutic effect in various anemias, radiation sickness, systematic lupus erythematosus, and certain diseases of the nervous system.

Vitamin B₁₅ (calgam or calcium pangamicum) is used as a means of improving metabolism (increases lipide exchange, absorption of oxygen by tissues, and so forth) and to treat hypoxias, coronary atherosclerosis, postinfarctal states, certain lung diseases, and hepatitides.

Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is prescribed for scurvy, certain diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, hemorrhages, allergies, collagenoses, atherosclerosis, infectious diseases, and occupational intoxications.

Vitamin P is used when there is increased fragility and permeability of capillaries, in allergies, and in acute glomerulonephritis with hemorrhages.

Vitamin D₂ (calciferol) is prescribed for disturbances of calcium metabolism in rickets and for osteoporosis, osteomalacia, and lupus.

Vitamin E (tocopherol) is injected during the treatment of progressive muscular atrophy, thrombophlebitides and phlebitides, endarteritis obliterans, trophic ulcers, collagenoses, newborn scleroderma, and occupational intoxications and also to prevent spontaneous abortions and for toxicoses of pregnancy.

Vitamin K is used for hemorrhages due to insufficiency of prothrombin in the blood.

In polyhypovitaminoses, as well as for the mutual reinforcement of the effects of vitamins, multivitamin preparations are used. For example, a vitamin complex choline chloride is prescribed for diseases of the liver.