Intravenous ascorbic acid and hydrogen peroxide in the management of patients with chikungunya

Chikungunya is a viral illness characterized by severe joint pains, which may persist for months to years. There is no effective treatment for this disease. We treated 56 patients with moderate to severe persistent pains with a single infusion of ascorbic acid ranging from 25-50 grams and hydrogen peroxide (3 cc of a 3% solution) from July to October 2014. Patients were asked about their pain using the Verbal Numerical Rating Scale-11 immediately before and after treatment. The mean Pain Score before and after treatment was 8 and 2 respectively (60%) (p < 0.001); and 5 patients (9%) had a Pain Score of 0. The use of intravenous ascorbic acid and hydrogen peroxide resulted in a statistically significant reduction of pain in patients with moderate to severe pain from the Chikungunya virus immediately after treatment.