How long does it take for iron infusion to work?

[garliclover]

I had an iron infusion yesterday and had no RLS symptoms, but come today the symptoms are back. But does it take some time for the iron to work?

[marsha2306]

Depends on kind/dose of iron in the infusion. Mine took 6 weeks to be effective enough to cut down on my Gabapentin.

[Graham3196 in reply to marsha2306]

Hi I am wondering what was the eventual outcome of your iron infusion? I have read that it sometimes takes 3 months to have a beneficial effect. Have you had a ferritin measurement since the infusion? If so what was your score?

[Grammieof4 in reply to Graham3196]

My doc said it takes about 4 weeks to work and lasts about 6-8 months. It brought my ferritin up from 73 to 650. After a year it dropped to 415.

[Graham3196 in reply to Grammieof4]

Thanks for that Did it work?

[marsha2306 in reply to Graham3196]

I was able to drop from 600 mg Gabapentin to 300. It did help for a good while.

[Graham3196 in reply to marsha2306]

Thanks Marsha

That sounds like a step in the right direction. Do you know what your ferritin went up to a few weeks after the infusion? I understand that the RLS has returned. Has your ferritin level dropped back to where it used to be? Did you take iron orally after the infusion?

Cheers

Graham

[marsha2306 in reply to Graham3196]

Actually my ferritin went way high to over 600. The next year, 400 and now its 215 (as of Monday). So I'm not entirely sure that it's just my iron that's causing this stinky RLS.

[Graham3196 in reply to marsha2306]

It sounds like you are tantalizingly close to a solution. From what Doctor Buchfuhrer has said its apparently safe to have regular top ups if the ferritin declines. Perhaps if you get a top up to 350 it might continue to improve. This is wishful thinking - not an informed prognosis.

Would you mind telling where you had the iron infusion performed? As you can see in this forum many people cannot find where to get the infusion that might make a big improvement in their lives.

Good Luck

Graham

[Grammieof4 in reply to Graham3196]

My doctor is the RLS specialist at Johns Hopkins Hospital and I had the infusion there.