I’ve had more iron sucrose infusions than I can count. When my anemia got severe again recently, my hematologist recommended I try an iron dextran infusion. While iron dextran has more potential for side effects and reactions, my hematologist wanted to try it for two reasons: I wasn’t pregnant (so it was safe) and one iron dextran infusion is able to replace multiple iron sucrose infusions.

There are a few differences between iron sucrose (Venofer) and iron dextrose (INFeD), and this and this go into more detail about them. The main differences are the length of infusion and the side effects. Iron sucrose infusions tend to be an hour or less (I usually had 200mg), whereas iron dextran infusions take a few hours (I had 975 mg). Iron sucrose infusions have less side effects, and iron dextran infusions are more likely to cause allergic reactions and side effects.

So, here is my experience with an IV iron dextran infusion!

I checked into the oncology department of the hospital early in the morning, had vitals done, and then met with my hematologist to go over the infusion.

He told me that this infusion would be a one-and-done (versus multiple iron sucrose infusions), but also came with more risks. For this reason, I had to have a pre-medication before beginning the infusion. First I had a port placed in my arm and had fluids run through it for a bit. Then the nurse added a bag of steroids to help lessen any severe allergic reactions.

Once the steroid ran, the nurse slowly administered a very small dose of the iron dextran in my IV to see how my body tolerated it. After 15 minutes with no reaction, I was able to start the full infusion, which took a few hours. I was able to move around in the infusion chair (and take my IV pole to the bathroom 🤣) and eat while the infusion ran.

Thankfully the infusion went well and I didn’t have an allergic reaction. Once the iron ran through the IV, the nurse ran a little bit of fluids through and I had to wait a bit before leaving to make sure I didn’t have any allergic reactions after the fact.

I was in the hospital for the morning, through lunch, and was able to check out in the afternoon! I had to be sure to go back to the hospital if I had any sort of severe reaction 1-2 days after the infusion.

The nurse told me that I may feel great (aka not so tired!) right after the infusion, but that would be due to the steroid. She warned me that I may feel flu-ish and tired for a few days as my body worked to absorb the iron.

The nurse was correct that I wouldn’t feel bad at all on the day of the infusion. I felt pretty normal thanks to the steroid!

Day one post-infusion, I woke up feeling very nauseous but thankfully never got sick. I was a little tired, but the nausea was the worst symptom at that point. Day two post-infusion I was exhausted. Day three post-infusion was the same. I was in bed as soon as possible each night and slept as late as my kids would allow each morning.

By day four post-infusion, I was feeling more like myself. Iron infusions take a few weeks to help anemia, but hopefully it keeps up hemoglobin, hematocrit, ferritin, etc. levels for at least the next six months!

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That was my experience with an IV iron dextran infusion. If you’re interested in learning about iron sucrose infusions and anemia during pregnancy, check out this post. Feel free to leave any questions in the comments!