Safety and efficacy of total dose infusion of iron dextran in iron deficiency anaemia.

OBJECTIVE

Intravenous iron is usually reserved for patients in whom oral administration has failed. Typically the calculated total dose is divided in to several fractions. Total dose infusion (TDI) of iron dextran is not commonly used due to the potential for serious side effects such as anaphylactic reactions.

METHODS

We identified 214 patients retrospectively, who were given TDI. Outcomes studied were: immediate side effects, improvement of haemoglobin and haematocrit.

RESULTS

The most frequent side effect of TDI was nausea with a rate of 2.2%. Headache, vomiting, chills and backache were seen in 1.1% of patients and about 0.5% of patients experienced fever and diarrhoea. No anaphylactic reaction was noted. Observed mean elevation of haematocrit was 5.3% and haemoglobin of 2.0 gm/dl (p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

TDI of iron dextran is a safe, potentially efficacious and convenient treatment in iron deficiency anaemia, in patients unresponsive or intolerant to oral iron.