What are the Different Types of Syringe Needles?

I have a few friends who work in hospitals, and when their supply department needs to buy syringes and needles, they buy safety syringes. One of my friends told me that incidents of healthcare workers sticking themselves with needles went way down after the hospital starting purchasing the safety syringes.

From what I gather, they cost a bit more than regular syringe needles, but it sounds like they're well worth it in the long run.

@SZapper - I know exactly what you mean about some needles being comically large. Sometimes those needles are so thick you can't believe a doctor is going to stick that into one of your muscles!

Anyway, I just wanted to say that there are other types of syringes besides syringe needles. There are syringes that are just used to administer liquid medication, and I think these are just called plain syringes. They look just like the syringe part of a syringe needle, but instead of having a needle, they have a plunger for drawing liquid into the syringe and then administering the liquid by mouth.

I used to give my cat insulin injections for his diabetes, which are giving in the skin, as the article said. I remember the BD syringe needles I used for his injections didn't look very threatening. The needle was fairly thin, and not very long. Also, the cat didn't seem too bothered by the injections, so I assume they didn't hurt much.

On the other hand, some of the needles I've been exposed to in doctors' offices over the years are much bigger and more threatening. The last time I got a tetanus shot, I remember the needle the doctor used looked almost comically large.

I had to have an IV when I was in the hospital with rotovirus as a child. I had a catheter inserted into my arm to deliver the fluids that were trying to exit my body rapidly through both vomit and diarrhea.

There was a syringe without a needle attached to the IV line further up. This was so the nurse could inject me with medication without having to disrupt the flow of the fluids to my body, which I so desperately needed. They also had to deliver potassium through the IV, since I was losing so much of it.

They had to medicate me with an injection to stop the vomiting and diarrhea. I believe that this was what they injected into the syringe in the tubing. It worked rather quickly.

@Perdido – I think a fear of needles is pretty common, but I don't really understand it. I get a flu vaccine every year, and I'm not bothered by the needle and syringe at all, but it would make some people cower in the corner and beg for mercy!

Of course, a flu shot uses a relatively small syringe needle. Perhaps a longer, wider needle would make me uneasy.

The flu shot has never hurt while I'm receiving it, but it usually does cause soreness at the injection site later. Still, it's not enough to make me fearful of syringe needles.

I have a friend who is terrified of syringes and needles. She received a very painful steroid shot as a child, so she associates both syringes and needles with extreme pain.

I believe that the shot that scarred her was in her rear. She had been very sick, and the nurse had told her that this shot would make her feel so much better. She also told her that she would feel a little sting.

My friend told me that the shot felt like getting stung by several wasps at once. The syringe was pretty big, since the shot was going into the muscle. However, it traumatized her so much that she is even afraid of the smaller needles used for skin injections.

I am participating in a clinical trial for a new drug to treat kidney disease, and I have to have blood drawn every three months. The nurse at the research center uses a syringe with a needle that is attached to a long tube for this.

The syringe looks a lot like the kind that go in the arms of patients about to receive intravenous medication. There is a needle attached to a piece of rubber that lays against my skin as the blood drains down the tube and into the glass vials at the end.

The nurse takes six vials of blood, but it's amazing how fast the process goes. I imagine that the needle is the perfect size for making this happen as quickly as possible without damaging my vein.