Effect of combination of vitamin B1 and B6 on leg cramps in pregnancy

Muscle cramp is a painful unusual local contraction of a muscle or part of a muscle. Between 5 to 30% of women complain from leg cramps during their pregnancy. Magnesium plays an important role in muscular function and metabolism. There is no adequate combination of Magnesium in Iran. As Magnesium interacts with both vitamin B1 and B6s and consuming these vitamins during pregnancy has no risk to the pregnant women, this study was performed to find the therapeutic effects of a combination of theses two vitamins on leg cramps during pregnancy. In this prospective double blind clinical study, 63 pregnant women who had leg cramps during their pregnancy were studied for frequency, intensity and time of the cramps. They were given coincidentally 56 capsules contained 250 mg of vitamin B1 and 240 mg of vitamin B6 or 56 capsules containing starch. They were advised to take two capsules daily for four weeks. Subsequently, the patients were assessed for frequency, intensity and time of cramps. Our results showed that following treatment, the frequency and intensity of the cramps were significantly lower in the case group than those of the control group (p<0.001, p<0.01). However, there was no significant difference in time of cramps between the two groups. No side effect was seen following the use of two vitamins or placebo. It seems that the prescription of vitamin Bl and B6 is more effective than placebo in decreasing frequency and intensity of leg cramps during pregnancy