IV Iron Infusion
Side Effects
What is iron staining?
Iron staining may occur from both intramuscular injections and intravenous infusions of iron replacement therapy. This occurs when there is a leakage of iron into the area around the injection or drip site into the surrounding tissues. This can be long lasting and often permanent without any treatment.
The appearance can range from a greyish black to brown pigmentation which is often unsightly and unwelcome for the patient.
Photo source (https://www.bmj.com)
Removal of discolouration
There have been many studies to show that Q-switched laser systems have been proven to be effective in the removal of this discolouration with minimal, if any, side effects.
The laser selectively targets the iron deposits in the area, often resulting in a significant fade of the Staining.
Depending on the location, size and intensity of the discolouration (volume of leakage) it will usually require more than one treatment.
The treatments can be slightly uncomfortable but lessened by the application of local anaesthetic cream usually one hour before the treatment time. We also incorporate a chiller machine that blows cold air onto the treated area during and after the treatment.
This photo below demonstrates the remarkable difference the laser treatments have made to the iron stain on one of our lovely patients. There were no complications related to the treatments and The patient was very happy with the end result.
Unfortunately, iron staining happens quite frequently these days but the results of the laser treatments have been very positive.
