Oral iron cutaneous adverse reaction and successful desensitization

The oral administering of iron preparations sometimes produces adverse gastrointestinal effects. In contrast, cutaneous reactions are extremely rare.

We report a patient with several episodes of generalized pruritus and erythematous maculopapular eruption after receiving oral compounds of iron and on whom desensitization with oral iron was attempted.

We studied a female with microcytic anemia due to gynecologic blood loss who presented several episodes of cutaneous eruption after receiving oral compounds of iron. Skin prick-test and two simple-blind, placebo-controlled oral challenges were performed with various iron compounds, and finally desensitization with oral iron was carried out.

Skin prick-test and patch-test with iron preparations were negative. Two simple-blind, placebo-controlled oral challenges were performed and the patient began experiencing similar cutaneous symptoms. We started a slow desensitization protocol using increasing doses until the target amount of the drug was tolerated without adverse effects. The chronic administration of oral iron therapy once a day for 9 months sustained the desensitized state and the anemia disappeared.

We present methods to effectively manage iron supply for a microcytic anemia patient with cutaneous reactions due to oral iron compounds, to avoid repeated transfusions, slow desensitization with oral iron was successfully attempted.