Titrating to find the correct dosage/balance can be a challenge and frustrating. I could never get ALC to work either, and I didn't seem to fit the profile for Benfotiamine. B5 has been tricky right along. With regard to PN, the study found it worked in conjunction with RLA; it never determined—or tested—whether it had any effect alone, so if RLA doesn't work for someone, I don't know if there's any reason to believe B5 will be of any benefit. OTOH, B5 has been shown to have potential/promise for a lot of things, so who knows? It might not address the burning pain (as is the purpose for taking it with RLA) but it may still provide some other benefit (e.g. lowering bad cholesterol & triglycerides) that may take longer to recognize. Dosage is another issue; fortunately, like B12, B5 has no known tolerable upper intake level, so there's ostensibly some wiggle room.

IMOE, B5 didn't work as fast as RLA (which worked for me almost immediately) but after a month or two—upon reviewing my pain journal—I noticed a definite difference. It also helps keep flares of cystic acne under control.

Doc