How is IVIG given?
Particularly for your first drip, a premed of either piriton or benadryl is given, or in some clinics an IV dose of piriton. Some clinics also give you additional piriton or benadryl to take afterwards. If you have your drip with a doctor on hand, the premed is sometimes skipped and if you have been fine on previous drips it is often skipped for subsequent drips. The IVIG is given via a cannula in the back of the hand or the crook of the elbow. It is infused slowly over 3-4 hours by IV (so you may want to take a sandwich and a drink with you). If you need to move around during your infusion (e.g., to go the toilet, that isnt a problem, as you can either take the drip bottle or the whole drip stand with you). The bottles of IVIg usually come in 10g and 5gs, so you will usually need more than one bottle to make up your total dose. The dose given is weight dependent (see below) and also varies between different clinics.
