DMSO

[Jimmy Alpha]

As I reported earlier, I had *bi-lateral fractures* of my quad tendons
about 5 years ago, well now they are really acting up and was wondering
if any here have had experience using *DMSO* on joints? If so, what is
the regiment one uses with the stuff? I remember someone said spraying
WD-40 on shoulder worked wonders for their pain. Anyone have any
knowledge in this area?
Jimmy "on norcos 10-325's" Alpha

[O R Gone]

Jimmy, look at this, and I say go for it!

Dr. Stanley Jacob, the father of DMSO offers information on DMSO &
MSM Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO)
Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), a by-product of the wood industry, has been
in use as a commercial solvent since 1953. It is also one of the most
studied but least understood pharmaceutical agents of our time--at least
in the United States. According to Stanley Jacob, MD, a former head of
the organ transplant program at Oregon Health Sciences University in
Portland, more than 40,000 articles on its chemistry have appeared in
scientific journals, which, in conjunction with thousands of laboratory
studies, provide strong evidence of a wide variety of properties. (See
Major Properties Attributed to DMSO) Worldwide, some 11,000 articles
have been written on its medical and clinical implications, and in 125
countries throughout the world, including Canada, Great Britain,
Germany, and Japan, doctors prescribe it for a variety of ailments,
including pain, inflammation, scleroderma, interstitial cystitis, and
arthritis elevated intercranial pressure.

Yet in the United States, DMSO has Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
approval only for use as a preservative of organs for transplant and for
interstitial cystitis, a bladder disease. It has fallen out of the
limelight and out of the mainstream of medical discourse, leading some
to believe that it was discredited. The truth is more complicated.

DMSO: A History of Controversy

The history of DMSO as a pharmaceutical began in 1961, when Dr. Jacob
was head of the organ transplant program at Oregon Health Sciences
University. It all started when he first picked up a bottle of the
colorless liquid. While investigating its potential as a preservative
for organs, he quickly discovered that it penetrated the skin quickly
and deeply without damaging it. He was intrigued. Thus began his
lifelong investigation of the drug.

The news media soon got word of his discovery, and it was not long
before reporters, the pharmaceutical industry, and patients with a
variety of medical complaints jumped on the news. Because it was
available for industrial uses, patients could dose themselves. This
early public interest interfered with the ability of Dr. Jacob--or,
later, the FDA--to see that experimentation and use were safe and
controlled and may have contributed to the souring of the mainstream
medical community on it.

Why, if DMSO possesses half the capabilities claimed by Dr. Jacob and
others, is it still on the sidelines of medicine in the United States today?

"It's a square peg being pushed into a round hole," says Dr. Jacob. "It
doesn't follow the rifle approach of one agent against one disease
entity. It's the aspirin of our era. If aspirin were to come along
today, it would have the same problem. If someone gave you a little
white pill and said take this and your headache will go away, your body
temperature will go down, it will help prevent strokes and major heart
problems--what would you think?"

Others cite DMSO's principal side effect: an odd odor, akin to that of
garlic, that emanates from the mouth shortly after use, even if use is
through the skin. Certainly, this odor has made double-blinded studies
difficult. Such studies are based on the premise that no one, neither
doctor nor patient, knows which patient receives the drug and which the
placebo, but this drug announces its presence within minutes.

Others, such as Terry Bristol, a Ph.D. candidate from the University of
London and president of the Institute for Science, Engineering and
Public Policy in Portland, Oregon, who assisted Dr. Jacob with his
research in the 1960s and 1970s, believe that the smell of DMSO may also
have put off the drug companies, that feared it would be hard to market.
Worse, however, for the pharmaceutical companies was the fact that no
company could acquire an exclusive patent for DMSO, a major
consideration when the clinical testing required to win FDA approval for
a drug routinely runs into millions of dollars. In addition, says Mr.
Bristol, DMSO, with its wide range of attributes, would compete with
many drugs these companies already have on the market or in development.

The FDA and DMSO

In the first flush of enthusiasm over the drug, six pharmaceutical
companies embarked on clinical studies. Then, in November 1965, a woman
in Ireland died of an allergic reaction after taking DMSO and several
other drugs. Although the precise cause of the woman's death was never
determined, the press reported it to be DMSO. Two months later, the FDA
closed down clinical trials in the United States, citing the woman's
death and changes in the lenses of certain laboratory animals that had
been given doses of the drug many times higher than would be given humans.

Some 20 years and hundreds of laboratory and human studies later, no
other deaths have been reported, nor have changes in the eyes of humans
been documented or claimed. Since then, however, the FDA has refused
seven applications to conduct clinical studies, and approved only 1, for
intersititial cystitis, which subsequently was approved for prescriptive
use in 1978.

Dr. Jacob believes the FDA "blackballed" DMSO, actively trying to kill
interest in a drug that could end much suffering. Jack de la Torre, MD,
Ph.D., professor of neurosurgery and physiology at the University of New
Mexico Medical School in Albuquerque, a pioneer in the use of DMSO and
closed head injury, says, "Years ago the FDA had a sort of chip on its
shoulder because it thought DMSO was some kind of snake oil medicine.
There were people there who were openly biased against the compound even
though they knew very little about it. With the new administration at
that agency, it has changed a bit." The FDA recently granted permission
to conduct clinical trials in Dr. de la Torre's field of closed head injury.

DMSO Penetrates Membranes and Eases Pain

The first quality that struck Dr. Jacob about the drug was its ability
to pass through membranes, an ability that has been verified by numerous
subsequent researchers.1 DMSO's ability to do this varies proportionally
with its strength--up to a 90 percent solution. From 70 percent to 90
percent has been found to be the most effective strength across the
skin, and, oddly, performance drops with concentrations higher than 90
percent. Lower concentrations are sufficient to cross other membranes.
Thus, 15 percent DMSO will easily penetrate the bladder.2

In addition, DMSO can carry other drugs with it across membranes. It is
more successful ferrying some drugs, such as morphine sulfate,
penicillin, steroids, and cortisone, than others, such as insulin. What
it will carry depends on the molecular weight, shape, and
electrochemistry of the molecules. This property would enable DMSO to
act as a new drug delivery system that would lower the risk of infection
occurring whenever skin is penetrated.

DMSO perhaps has been used most widely as a topical analgesic, in a 70
percent DMSO, 30 percent water solution. Laboratory studies suggest that
DMSO cuts pain by blocking peripheral nerve C fibers.3 Several clinical
trials have demonstrated its effectiveness,4,5 although in one trial, no
benefit was found.6 Burns, cuts, and sprains have been treated with
DMSO. Relief is reported to be almost immediate, lasting up to 6 hours.
A number of sports teams and Olympic athletes have used DMSO, although
some have since moved on to other treatment modalities. When
administration ceases, so do the effects of the drug.

Dr. Jacob said at a hearing of the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Health in
1980, "DMSO is one of the few agents in which effectiveness can be
demonstrated before the eyes of the observers....If we have patients
appear before the Committee with edematous sprained ankles, the
application of DMSO would be followed by objective diminution of
swelling within an hour. No other therapeutic modality will do this."

Chronic pain patients often have to apply the substance for 6 weeks
before a change occurs, but many report relief to a degree they had not
been able to obtain from any other source.

DMSO and Inflammation

DMSO reduces inflammation by several mechanisms. It is an antioxidant, a
scavenger of the free radicals that gather at the site of injury. This
capability has been observed in experiments with laboratory animals7 and
in 150 ulcerative colitis patients in a double-blinded randomized study
in Baghdad, Iraq.8 DMSO also stabilizes membranes and slows or stops
leakage from injured cells.

At the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1978, 213
patients with inflammatory genitourinary disorders were studied.
Researchers concluded that DMSO brought significant relief to the
majority of patients. They recommended the drug for all inflammatory
conditions not caused by infection or tumor in which symptoms were
severe or patients failed to respond to conventional therapy.9

Stephen Edelson, MD, F.A.A.F.P., F.A.A.E.M., who practices medicine at
the Environmental and Preventive Health Center of Atlanta, has used DMSO
extensively for 4 years. "We use it intravenously as well as locally,"
he says. "We use it for all sorts of inflammatory conditions, from
people with rheumatoid arthritis to people with chronic low back
inflammatory-type symptoms, silicon immune toxicity syndromes, any kind
of autoimmune process.

"DMSO is not a cure," he continues. "It is a symptomatic approach used
while you try to figure out why the individual has the process going on.
When patients come in with rheumatoid arthritis, we put them on IV DMSO,
maybe three times a week, while we are evaluating the causes of the
disease, and it is amazing how free they get. It really is a dramatic
treatment."

As for side effects, Dr. Edelson says: "Occasionally, a patient will
develop a headache from it, when used intravenously--and it is dose
related." He continues: "If you give a large dose, [the patient] will
get a headache. And we use large doses. I have used as much as 30İmlİIV
over a couple of hours. The odor is a problem. Some men have to move out
of the room [shared] with their wives and into separate bedrooms. That
is basically the only problem."

DMSO was the first nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory discovered since
aspirin. Mr. Bristol believes that it was that discovery that spurred
pharmaceutical companies on to the development on other varieties of
nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories. "Pharmaceutical companies were saying
that if DMSO can do this, so can other compounds," says Mr. Bristol.
"The shame is that DMSO is less toxic and has less int he way of side
effects than any of them."

Collagen and Scleroderma

Scleroderma is a rare, disabling, and sometimes fatal disease, resulting
form an abnormal buildup of collagen in the body. The body swells, the
skin--particularly on hands and face--becomes dense and leathery, and
calcium deposits in joints cause difficulty of movement. Fatigue and
difficulty in breathing may ensue. Amputation of affected digits may be
necessary. The cause of scleroderma is unknown, and, until DMSO arrived,
there was no known effective treatment.

Arthur Scherbel, MD, of the department of rheumatic diseases and
pathology at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, conducted a study using
DMSO with 42 scleroderma patients who had already exhausted all other
possible therapies without relief. Dr. Scherbel and his coworkers
concluded 26 of the 42 showed good or excellent improvement. Histotoxic
changes were observed together with healing of ischemic ulcers on
fingertips, relief from pain and stiffness, and an increase in strength.
The investigators noted, "It should be emphasized that these have never
been observed with any other mode of therapy."10 Researchers in other
studies have since come to similar conclusions.11

Does DMSO Help Arthritis?

It was inevitable that DMSO, with its pain-relieving,
collagen-softening, and anti-inflammatory characteristics, would be
employed against arthritis, and its use has been linked to arthritis as
much as to any condition. Yet the FDA has never given approval for this
indication and has, in fact, turned down three Investigational New Drug
(IND) applications to conduct extensive clinical trials.

Moreover, its use for arthritis remains controversial. Robert Bennett,
MD, F.R.C.P., F.A.C.R., F.A.C.P., professor of medicine and chief,
division of arthritis and rheumatic disease at Oregon Health Sciences
University (Dr. Jacob's university), says other drugs work better. Dava
Sobel and Arthur Klein conducted their own informal study of 47
arthritis patients using DMSO in preparation for writing their book,
Arthritis: What Works, and came to the same conclusion.12

Yet laboratory studies have indicated that DMSO's capacity as a
free-radical scavenger suggests an important role for it in arthritis.13
The Committee of Clinical Drug Trials of the Japanese Rheumatism
Association conducted a trial with 318 patients at several clinics using
90 percent DMSO and concluded that DMSO relieved joint pain and
increased range of joint motion and grip strength, although performing
better in more recent cases of the disease.14 It is employed widely in
the former Soviet Union for all the different types of arthritis, as it
is in other countries around the world.

Dr. Jacob remains convinced that it can play a significant role in the
treatment of arthritis. "You talk to veterinarians associated with any
race track, and you'll find there's hardly an animal there that hasn't
been treated with DMSO. No veterinarian is going to give his patient
something that does not work. There's no placebo effect on a horse."

DMSO and Central Nervous System Trauma

Since 1971, Dr. de la Torre, then at the University of Chicago, has
experimented using DMSO with injury to the central nervous system.
Working with laboratory animals, he discovered that DMSO lowered
intracranial pressure faster and more effectively than any other drug.
DMSO also stabilized blood pressure, improved respiration, and increased
urine output by five times and increased blood flow through the spinal
cord to areas of injury.15-17 Since then, DMSO has been employed with
human patients suffering severe head trauma, initially those whose
intracranial pressure remained high despite the administration of
mannitol, steroids, and barbiturates. In humans, as well as animals, it
has proven the first drug to significantly lower intracranial pressure,
the number one problem with severe head trauma.

"We believe that DMSO may be a very good product for stroke," says Dr.
de la Torre, "and that is a devastating illness which affects many more
people than head injury. We have done some preliminary clinical trials,
and there's a lot of animal data showing that it is a very good agent in
dissolving clots."

Other Possible Applications for DMSO

Many other uses for DMSO have been hypothesized from its known qualities
hand have been tested in the laboratory or in small clinical trials. Mr.
Bristol speaks with frustration about important findings that have never
been followed up on because of the difficulty in finding funding and
because "to have on your resume these days that you've worked on DMSO is
the kiss of death." It is simply too controversial. A sampling of some
other possible applications for this drug follows.

DMSO as long been used to promote healing. People who have it on hand
often use it for minor cuts and burns and report that recovery is
speedy. Several studies have documented DMSO use with soft tissue
damage, local tissue death, skin ulcers, and burns.18-21

In relation to cancer, several properties of DMSO have gained attention.
In one study with rats, DMSO was found to delay the spread of one cancer
and prolong survival rates with another.22 In other studies, it has been
found to protect noncancer cells while potentiating the chemotherapeutic
agent.

Much has been written recently about the worldwide crisis in antibiotic
resistance among bacteria (see Alternative & Complementary Therapies,
Volume 2, Number 3, 1996, pages 140-144) Here, too, DMSO may be able to
play a role. Researcher as early as 1975 discovered that it could break
down the resistance certain bacteria have developed.23

In addition to its ability to lower intracranial pressure following
closed head injury, Dr. de la Torre's work suggests that the drug may
actually have the ability to prevent paralysis, given its ability to
speedily clean out cellular debris and stop the inflammation that
prevents blood from reaching muscle, leading to the death of muscle tissue.

With its great antioxidant powers, DMSO could be used to mitigate some
of the effects of aging, but little work has been done to investigate
this possibility. Toxic shock, radiation sickness, and septicemia have
all been postulated as responsive to DMSO, as have other conditions too
numerous to mention here.

DMSO in the Future

Will DMSO ever sit on the shelves of pharmacies in this country as a
legal prescriptive for many of the conditions it may be able to address?
Will the studies we need to discover when this drug is most appropriate
ever be done? Given the difficulties the drug has run into so far and
the recent development of new drugs that perform some of the same
functions, Mr. Bristol is doubtful. Others, however, such as Dr. Jacob
and Dr. de la Torre, see the FDA approval of DMSO for interstitial
cystitis and the more recent FDA go-ahead for DMSO trials with closed
head injury as new indications of hope. The cystitis approval means that
physicians may use it at their discretion for other uses, giving DMSO a
new legitimacy.

Dr. Jacob continues to believe that DMSO should not even be called a
drug but is more correctly a new therapeutic principle, with an effect
on medicine that will be profound in many areas. Whether that is true
cannot be known without extensive a publicly reported trials, which are
dependent on the willingness of researchers to undertake rigorous
studies in this still-unfashionable tack and of pharmaceutical companies
and other investors to back them up. That this is a live issue is proved
by the difficulty the investigators with approval to test DMSO for
closed head injury clinically are having finding funds to conduct the
trials.

In 1980, testifying before the Select Committee on Agin of the U.S.
House of Representatives, Dr. Scherbel said, "The controversy that
exists over the clinical effectiveness of DMSO is not
well-founded--clinical effectiveness may be variable in different
patients. If toxicity is consistently minimal, the drug should not be
restricted from practice. The clinical effectiveness of DMSO can be
decided with complete satisfaction if the drug is made available to the
practicing physician. The number of patient complaints about pain and
the number of phone calls to the doctor's office will decide quickly
whether or not the drug is effective."

It may be premature to call for the full rehabilitation of DMSO, but it
is time to call for a full investigation of its true range of capabilities.