55-year-old Mr. Yang was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes as early as 10 years ago, but in the past 10 years, his blood sugar has not been well controlled.
The doctor told Mr. Yang that this is a chronic complication caused by diabetes, and once it appears, it is often irreversible, and in this case, Mr. Yang can only take long-term medication to control the condition, and the drugs prescribed by the doctor include methylcobalamin.
Many people don't know what exactly methylcobalamin is and why it can be used to treat diabetic peripheral neuropathy.
Methylcobalamin is an organic compound, endogenous vitamin B12, which is present in the blood and medullary fluid, can cross the blood-brain barrier without biotransformation, and can be used to treat or prevent vitamin B12 deficiency and its complications. After taking it, methylcobalamin can replace endogenous vitamin B12, increase vitamin B12 levels, and improve vitamin B12 deficiency.
When it comes to the efficacy of vitamin B12, we all know that it can treat megaloblastic anemia together with folic acid, but many people don't know that vitamin B12 can also promote nerve nutrition and improve nerve conduction, because vitamin B12 has the effect of nourishing nerves, so it can be used to treat diabetic peripheral neuropathy.
Because of this, methylcobalamin is known as the friend of diabetic patients, especially those with diabetic peripheral neuropathy, who need to take methylcobalamin for a long time.
But what everyone doesn't know is that methylcobalamin can be used to treat the following four diseases in addition to diabetic peripheral neuropathy.
First, methylcobalamin can be used for peripheral neuralgia
Many diseases can cause peripheral neuralgia, such as shingles, which causes herpes zoster virus, which is neurophilic, so patients with herpes zoster will feel significant pain, and methylcobalamin can be used to treat peripheral neuralgia because it can nourish nerves.
In addition to neuralgia caused by shingles, methylcobalamin can also be used for abnormal pain such as trigeminal neuralgia and intercostal neuralgia.
In addition, both cervical spondylosis and lumbar spondylosis can compress nerves, resulting in abnormal neuralgia, and methylcobalamin can also be used.
Second, methylcobalamin can be used to treat megaloblastic anemia
Vitamin B12 can affect the synthesis of pyrimidines, purines, and nucleic acids, and if vitamin B12 is deficient, it can lead to megaloblastic anemia.
Since the main ingredient of methylcobalamin is endogenous vitamin B12, taking methylcobalamin can prevent and treat megaloblastic anemia, especially when taken with folic acid, the effect is better.
Third, methylcobalamin can be used to treat hyperhomocysteinemia
Hyperhomocysteinemia is a condition characterized by elevated homocysteine in the blood, usually referred to as homocysteine > 15 micromol/L. If homocysteinemia is elevated, patients are more likely to develop cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease.
Homocysteine is a non-protein amino acid that can be converted to methionine or cysteine in circulation with the aid of B vitamins, and vitamin B deficiency can lead to hyperhomocysteinemia.
Methylcobalamin belongs to vitamin B12, which is a type of B vitamins that can promote the metabolism of homocysteine in the body and reduce its accumulation in the body, so methylcobalamin can be used to treat hyperhomocysteinemia.
Fourth, methylcobalamin can be used to treat optic nerve damage
Optic nerve damage is a disorder in which conduction dysfunction is caused by a cause within the optic nerve conduction pathway. Methylcobalamin can be used to treat optic nerve damage because it can nourish nerves.
Since methylcobalamin has such a good effect, how long does it take for diabetics to take methylcobalamin?
Since diabetic peripheral neuropathy is irreversible, the time of taking methylcobalamin also varies, if the neuropathy is very mild, it is generally enough to take it for 3-6 months, and if the symptoms are severe, you need to take medication for a long time.
The most serious side effect of methylcobalamin is that it may cause severe allergic reactions, including rashes, urticaria, facial swelling, anaphylactic shock, etc., and occasionally there will be relatively mild gastrointestinal reactions, including nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, diarrhea, etc.