Iroferose Mechanism of Action

Therapeutic Classification: Anti-anemia.
Pharmacology: Pharmacodynamics: Following intravenous administration of Iron Sucrose Injection USP, iron sucrose is dissociated by the reticuloendothelial system into iron and sucrose. In 22 hemodialysis patients on erythropoietin (recombinant human erythropoietin) therapy treated with iron sucrose containing 100 mg of iron, three times weekly for three weeks, significant increases in serum iron and serum ferritin and significant decreases in total iron binding capacity occurred four weeks from the initiation of iron sucrose treatment.
Pharmacokinetics: Following intravenous injection of a single dose of Iron sucrose Injection USP containing 100 mg iron in healthy volunteers, maximum iron levels, averaging 538 μmol/l, were obtained 10 minutes after injection. The volume of distribution of the central compartment corresponded well to the volume of plasma (approximately 3 litres).
The iron injected was rapidly cleared from the plasma, the terminal half-life being approx. 6 h. The volume of distribution at steady state was about 8 litres, indicating a low iron distribution in the body fluid. Due to the lower stability of iron sucrose in comparison to transferrin, a competitive exchange of iron to transferrin was observed. This resulted in iron transport of approx. 31 mg iron/24 h.
Renal elimination of iron, occurring in the first 4 h after injection, corresponds to less than 5% of the total body clearance. After 24 h the plasma levels of iron were reduced to the pre-dose iron level and about 75% of the dosage of sucrose was excreted.