ReviewThe archives of bone and joint surgery2026
The Role of Vitamin C Supplementation in Total Knee Arthroplasty Outcomes: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.
Review in The archives of bone and joint surgery, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Objectives: Oxidative stress, inflammation, and endothelial dysfunction contribute to perioperative morbidity following total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Vitamin C (ascorbic acid), an essential antioxidant cofactor, has been proposed to mitigate these pathways. This systematic review evaluates current evidence on perioperative vitamin C supplementation in TKA and its effects on pain, inflammation, blood loss, and postoperative recovery. Methods: A systematic search of PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science was conducted from database inception through July 2025, following PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing perioperative vitamin C use in primary TKA were included. Methodologic quality was appraised using the Cochrane Risk-of-Bias tool (RoB 2). Owing to heterogeneity in dosing, timing, and outcomes, results were synthesized narratively. Results: Ten RCTs involving 1,364 patients met the inclusion criteria. Vitamin C administration varied substantially in dose, route, and timing. Across studies, findings for postoperative pain, inflammatory markers, blood loss, and functional recovery were inconsistent. Several reported numerical trends favors vitamin C, but most outcomes lacked statistical significance or were supported by a single study. Evidence for reduced complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) was more consistent but still limited by small sample sizes. No major safety concerns were identified. Conclusion: Current evidence does not support a definitive benefit of perioperative vitamin C supplementation in TKA. While isolated studies suggest potential reductions in inflammation, blood loss, or pain, these findings are not consistent across trials and often lack statistical significance. Larger, methodologically sound RCTs with standardized dosing protocols are needed before recommending vitamin C as a routine perioperative supplement.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.