Thiamine

"Wet" beriberi with myocardial failure must be treated as an emergency cardiac condition, and thiamine must be administered slowly by the IV route in this situation (see WARNINGS ). In the treatment of beriberi, 10 to 20 mg of thiamine hydrochloride are given IM three times daily for as long as two weeks. (See WARNINGS regarding repeated injection of thiamine.) An oral therapeutic multivitamin preparation containing 5 to 10 mg thiamine, administered daily for one month, is recommended to achieve body tissue saturation. Infantile beriberi that is mild may respond to oral therapy, but if collapse occurs, doses of 25 mg may cautiously be given IV. Poor dietary habits should be corrected and an abundant and well-balanced dietary intake should be prescribed. Patients with neuritis of pregnancy in whom vomiting is severe enough to preclude adequate oral therapy should receive 5 to 10 mg of thiamine hydrochloride IM daily. In the treatment of Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, thiamine hydrochloride has been administered IV in an initial dose of 100 mg, followed by IM doses of 50 to 100 mg daily until the patient is consuming a regular, balanced diet.