See below

[teresad]

Since being diagnosed with ceoliac disease, I have also been told that my iron is very low and the specialist recommended IV injection. My GP said that this is risky and needs to be administered in hospital and you can have a bad reaction, i.e. collapse. My GP said there are iron injections but Doctors stopped doing these as they are so painful. It has to be injected into the muscle. I know I had them for 3 weeks many years ago when I had my first daughter. Have any of you had to have any of this? Or have you just gone for tablets if your iron is low?

[Hidden]

I have to have B12 injections which is quite painful but managable, i had tablets for my low iron, iv not really heard of anything other than this, sorry no help to you but thought i would share my experience

Paula x

[teresad]

thank you for your reply

[InVivo]

Iron deficiency and iron deficient anaemia are extremely common in CD, with IDA that does not respond to oral iron therapy actually being one of the (supposedly) recognised symptoms of CD.

After much trial and error, I have found that oral iron does less than nothing for me, so I have opted for iron injections, which I was given originally by my doctor in Australia as routine 15 years ago.

It is also standard to have iron injections in America and I have had them there with no problem as recently as March this year.

I have had two doctors (both private GPs) agree to give me iron injections here in the UK, but I had to sign a form saying I understood the risk, and they had to special order the iron from the pharmacy as it wasn't available straight away.

There have been a couple of cases of anaphylaxis from iron injections over there years and that's made the UK very cautious about it.

But actually people have allergic reactions to medicines all the time, and the both doctors that agreed to do mine said that they think the reaction to iron injections is an over-reaction to the risk.

Regarding whether they hurt. The first one certainly does. I felt like I'd been shot or punched in the buttock and I couldn't walk for about 20 minutes. The second one hurt, but less, and after that it was fine.

It doesn't hurt when you're getting it, it starts about 5-10 minutes later.

For me, it certainly doesn't hurt enough that I don't want to have them. They make me feel so much better.

If you want to try, you could ask your GP to reconsider the intramuscular injections (try cosmofer), letting him/her know that you've had them before with no adverse effects, and remind him/her that very often coeliacs struggle to absorb iron when it's taken orally, even when the villi have healed because of problems with the transport mechanism.

And honestly, of all the medicines that doctors hand out regularly, I find iron injections to be one of the least scary.

[dinger]

Hi, I have long standing blood problems as a result of having coeliacs. I have pernicious anemia and a very low ferritin level. Two years ago I had an Iron infusion at my local hospital it took 8 hours but it was well worth it after i felt brilliant. But the effects do wear off. I am now back to were I was before. Ask for another one and I am now told because of cut backs only renal patients are allowed to have them. Also my doctor told me Iron injections are no longer available. I had them before when pregnant and they didn't hurt that much about the same as having a B12 injection.

[marywales]

I have pernicious anaemia too, I have my injection every 8 weeks and yes they can be a bit painful if you are tense; the trick is to relax your arm totally so the muscle is flaccid and look the other way so you can't see it coming, that works for me and 4 days later I could fight a lion so it's well worth it !!

[Hidden]

Found if ampoule cold it hurts, but if warm doent.