Effect of Intravenous Iron Supplementation on Iron Stores in Non-Anemic Iron-Deficient Patients with Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia

In hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT), frequent episodes of nasal and gastrointestinal bleeding commonly lead to iron-deficiency with or without anemia. In the retrospective study presented here we assessed the iron stores, as determined by analysis of plasma ferritin, during oral and intravenous iron supplementation, respectively, in a population of iron-deficient non-anemic HHT patients who were inadequately iron-repleted by oral supplementation. A switch from oral to intravenous iron supplementation was associated with a significant increase in ferritin in this patient population.