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Pyridoxine May Reduce Carpal Tunnel Symptoms: Presented at AANP

By Bonnie Darves

ANAHEIM, CA -- July 3, 2003 -- A daily dose of pyridoxine HCl (vitamin B6) might relieve significantly the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) soon after starting treatment, according to a new study presented here July 1 at the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners annual meeting.

Use of pyridoxine is not associated with any toxic effects as are the treatments commonly used for treatment of CTS symptoms, such as high doses of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Pyridoxine is also easier to use than is another standard treatment for CTS -- arm splints.

"That is really the main point -- that there is no risk for non-Parkinson's patients in taking [pyridoxine]," said study author Gregory Holm, MD, an assistant professor of nursing and medicine at the University of South Florida, in Tampa, Florida, United States. "And if there is an effect, it will be seen within 3 weeks."

Dr. Holm cautioned that pyridoxine is contraindicated in patients with neurologic disorders who take the drug levodopa.

In the pilot study, the first part of a multicenter, randomized, double-blind clinical trial, the researchers compared the effects in 29 subjects treated with pyridoxine 200 mg daily and 31 with placebo who had similar severity of CTS at baseline, based on the Hold-Moody Carpal Tunnel Severity Scale. All subjects also received NSAIDs and night-splints.

Patients in the pyridoxine group experienced a significant positive effect compared with the control group (P=.022). In those who achieved a response to pyridoxine, the effects were seen within 3 weeks of starting treatment, Dr. Holm said. Nonresponders did not experience improvement between Weeks 3 and 6.

"If it is going to be effective, improvement will be seen within a few weeks. So if it isn't working at 6 weeks [of treatment], it's time to move on to other options], Dr. Holm said.


[Study title: Effects of Pyridoxine on Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: A Randomized Clinical Trial Pilot Study. Poster 26]

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