Vitamin C is best known for supporting the immune system, helping wounds heal, and keeping skin and blood vessels healthy.
Most people get enough vitamin C from fruits and vegetables, but people who suffer major injuries can quickly lose large amounts of this important nutrient. Scientists have wondered for years whether giving very high doses of vitamin C directly into a vein could help seriously injured patients survive.
A new review published in BMJ Military Health suggests this treatment may offer important benefits. Researchers found that high-dose intravenous (IV) vitamin C may reduce the risk of death, lower the chance of dangerous infections called sepsis, and shorten hospital stays in people with major trauma.
However, they also stressed that the current evidence is not strong enough for doctors to recommend it as standard treatment.
Major trauma can result from road crashes, falls, explosions, gunshot wounds, or other severe injuries. These injuries trigger widespread inflammation throughout the body.
Blood pressure may fall, organs can become damaged, and patients face a high risk of infection and multiple organ failure. Even with modern intensive care, trauma remains a major cause of death worldwide.
Vitamin C has several roles that make it an interesting treatment. It helps repair damaged tissues, supports the immune system, protects cells from harmful free radicals, helps maintain healthy blood vessels, and may improve blood pressure during severe illness. Because vitamin C levels fall rapidly after major injury, replacing it could potentially improve recovery.
To examine the evidence, researchers searched medical databases for studies published up to the end of 2025. Out of 108 studies, only six met the strict requirements for analysis. Together these studies included 5,171 patients. Three studies were randomized clinical trials, while the other three were observational studies.
Overall, patients receiving high-dose IV vitamin C tended to have better outcomes. Several studies reported lower death rates within 30 days. Patients also spent less time in intensive care and left hospital sooner. Four studies found lower rates of sepsis, while two reported fewer cases of multiple organ failure.
Despite these encouraging findings, the researchers emphasized several important limitations. The studies used different vitamin C doses, different combinations of treatments, and different patient groups.
None of the studies tested vitamin C by itself, making it difficult to know exactly how much benefit came from vitamin C alone. Researchers also do not yet know the best time after injury to begin treatment.
This review suggests that high-dose IV vitamin C deserves further investigation because even small improvements in survival or infection rates could save many lives after severe trauma.
However, the quality of the evidence remains low due to the small number of studies and differences between them. Large, carefully designed clinical trials are needed before vitamin C can become a routine treatment for trauma patients.
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Source: BMJ Military Health review.
