ergo-log.com

Definition: "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance "

12.06.2024

Vitamin C accelerates the healing of a torn rotator cuff

If you have had to undergo surgery due to a tear in a rotator cuff, vitamin C supplementation will speed up your recovery. According to a French study, which appeared in 2020 in the European Journal of Orthopedic Surgery & Traumatology, a daily dose of 500 milligrams is already effective.

Study
Doctors from the Center Hospitalier Universitaire de Toulouse followed 90 patients who had undergone surgery because their shoulder tendons had been torn. For six months after the operation, the doctors used ultrasound technology to determine how well the shoulder ligaments were recovering.

Half of the test subjects took a daily supplement with 500 milligrams of vitamin C [VC], the other half did not [VC-].

The researchers did not use placebos.

Results
When the researchers measured the functioning of the shoulder joint after surgery, they saw no differences between the two groups. Both groups were able to use their operated shoulder joint equally well.

According to the scans, the vitamin C group recovered better. After six months, 89 percent of vitamin C users had recovered. In the other group it was 77 percent.

Click on the table and figure below for a larger version.

Conclusion
"This study showed a trend to improve tendon healing after rotator cuff repair with postoperative vitamin C supplementation", the researchers summarize the results of their study.

"However, a prospective study with a larger patient population achieving satisfactory power should be conducted to confirm this finding."

Source:
Eur J Orthop Surg Traumatol. 2022 Jan;32(1):63-70.

More:
Accelerated recovery and fewer complications after heart surgery with extra vitamin C 22.12.2023
Significantly less pain after surgery due to vitamin C supplementation 26.11.2023
Vitamin C protects knee joint from wear and tear 14.08.2023

Archives:
Joints & Tendons
Vitamin C
Vitamins
Injuries

Collagen supplementation accelerates tendon injury healing in athletes Australian sports scientists studied the effect of Tendoforte, a Gelita product.	Using whey during strength training helps tendons grow stronger If you're interested in strengthening your knee ligaments then you'll probably be interested in this article.	Hefty dose of vitamin B5 helps damaged tendons heal quicker Researchers at the French institute Inserm discovered this in the early 1980s.