The Role of Carnitine in Medicine and the Authors Own Experience

Overview

The authors present a review on the effects of carnitine on the muscular, cardiac, cerebral andhepatic system. Carnitine is important in perinatology in premature infants. It is effective inmale infertility caused by poor sperm motility. Carnitine treatment must have a long-termcharacter. The authors present their own experience with the successful use of carnitine inrehabilitation of muscular weakness and fatigue. Carnitine promotes rather muscle strengththan endurance of muscular contraction. There are different results as regards the effect ofcarnitine on voluntary muscular contraction and contraction after electric stimulation. Positiveresults were also obtained in obliterating arteriosclerosis of the lower extremities. Whencarnitine is administered, significant prolongation of gait occurs in case of claudications, ascompared with a placebo group. After one-month administration of carnitine no change incardiac arrhythmias, body weight and blood lipids was observed.

Key words:
carnitine - rehabilitation - claudications of lower extremities.