Vitamin C Supplementation as a Preventive Treatment of Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy

The purpose of this pilot study is to determine whether vitamin C supplementation is beneficial in treating and/or preventing diabetic peripheral neuropathy in people with type 2 diabetes.

Painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), a condition characterized by pain affecting the feet, legs and hands that is often characterized as burning or a "pins and needles" sensation, is estimated to affect up to 66% of the U.S. diabetic population. This pilot study will examine the effect of a daily dose of ascorbic acid, a known aldose reductase inhibitor, versus placebo, and the effect that it can have on intracellular erythrocyte (red blood cell) sorbitol levels, aldose reductase activity and aldose reductase enzyme levels utilizing benchtop methods, and effects on clinical DPN-associated pain reporting and changes in quantitative sensory testing in the lower extremities via touch discrimination and vibratory sensory testing in patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) over the course of 90 days of treatment.