<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

Last month I asked:

"Has anyone experience of, or literature on, B12 injections more frequently than monthly? What are the contraindications? My elderly chronically anemic coeliac mother feels much worse after 3 weeks and is looking for information to give her doctor."

Apologies for the delay ( I had tried to post it all but it was too long)

Great response for what is clearly favourite topic (and one on which American coeliacs do have more detailed knowledge). By the time I had emailed my mother the good news her GP had been to visit her and give her both B12 and steroid injections (she has many other AI conditions) and she was feeling better.  She is very grateful for all your replies and I feel confident she will get the injections more often - though I am also encouraging her to investigate the oral sublingual form.

So thanks!

Charlotte, Oxford, UK

Executive summary:

  a.. There is plenty of evidence of older people having B12 injections more than monthly. 
  b.. There is literature to support this if you look as well as huge anecdotal experience amongts coeliacs and others 
  c.. It might be worth considering additional oral (sublingual) B12 supplements
Look at:
This link really has everything you need to know (and quite a lot more!):  
http://brain.hastypastry.net/forums/showthread.php?t=3742
http://www.merck.com/mmhe/sec12/ch154/ch154j.html

Treatment of vitamin B12 deficiency or pernicious anemia consists of replacing vitamin B12. People who have symptoms due to nerve damage are usually given vitamin B12 by injection. Injections, which may be self-administered, are given daily or weekly for several weeks until the level of vitamin B12 returns to normal. Then injections are given once a month indefinitely, unless the disorder causing it can be corrected. For people who have the deficiency but no symptoms, the vitamin may be taken by mouth or as a nasal gel, but blood tests are performed periodically to make sure the vitamin B12 level returns to and remains normal.

This gives lots of extra info on B12:  

http://www.diagnose-me.com/treat/T39005.html

This is really useful on frequency - a GPs' Q & A service: 

http://www.clinicalanswers.nhs.uk/index.cfm?question=1031

"The question of frequency of vitamin B12 injections due to malabsorbtion is one of the most frequently asked questions of the various Q&A services."

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000569.htm

Monthly vitamin B-12 injections are the definitive treatment to correct the vitamin B-12 deficiency. This therapy corrects the anemia and may correct the neurological complications if given soon enough.

Since about 1% of vitamin B-12 is absorbed (even in the absence of intrinsic factor), some doctors recommend that elderly patients with gastric atrophy take oral vitamin B-12 supplements in addition to monthly injections.

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