Electronic Health Reporter

Diabetes mellitus type 1 and type 2 belong to chronic health conditions that are widely spread all around the world. The main difference between them is that type 1 diabetes occurs when the body does not produce insulin to regulate blood sugar levels, while type 2 diabetes takes place when the body produces a certain amount of insulin but does not use it effectively.

Both types of diabetes mellitus oftentimes make people dependent on daily injections of insulin to regulate their blood sugar levels. While these injections, in their turn, might be performed with the help of insulin syringes, pens, or pumps. Usually, it is the task of the healthcare provider to define what device will work best in the individual case of each patient.

In case the usage of syringes is your option, it is essential to define what kind of syringe and needle size will be right for you. To do so, feel free to go through the below-mentioned information.

A Few Words on the Usage of Insulin Syringes and Needles

The usage of insulin syringes and needles is probably the most popular method of injecting insulin. Despite the appearance of insulin pens and pumps, a great number of people consider the insulin syringe to be the easiest, most convenient, and most cost-effective device to administer insulin beneath the skin.

Below, you will find the most important points on the usage of insulin syringes and needles:

• Both insulin syringes and needles are meant for one-time use. In other words, you should dispose of them after each and every injection and do not use a single syringe and needle twice. This way, you will ensure the sterility of the procedure;
• During insulin injections, with the help of syringes and needles, make sure to constantly change the injection sites. In such a way, you will be able to avoid an abnormal fat deposit under the skin, which frequently occurs if the injection site remains unchanged for a long time period;
• Insulin shots that are given with the help of syringes and needles should be administered into the subcutaneous fatty tissue (or, in other words, right beneath a patient’s skin). Thus, you should avoid insulin delivery into your muscles;
• A correctly chosen insulin syringe (with the appropriate size of a needle) determines the effectiveness of the treatment. Therefore, make sure to use the most appropriate option for your individual situation and case.

Factors that Influence the Needed Insulin Syringe and Needle Sizes

There exist different sizes of insulin syringes and needles. Thus, it is of vital importance to select those options that will help you to regulate your blood sugars best.

Among the key factors that influence the needed insulin syringe and needle sizes are:

• Your insulin dose. Naturally, bigger insulin doses would require bigger sizes of syringes and needles. It is essential that the syringe contain the full dose of insulin required by a person;
• Your insulin type. Due to the fact that there exist different types of insulin, they should be injected with the help of syringes and needles of different sizes.

Please note that your recommended dose of insulin might change. Therefore, you might need to use syringes and needles of various sizes from time to time to inject insulin in accurate dosing.

Main Insulin Syringe Sizes

There exist multiple sizes of insulin syringes. They usually depend on the number of insulin units a person needs to inject per one shot. Below, you will find the list of the main ones:

• A 0.3 ml syringe (it is intended for the administration of a dose below 30 units with a 1-unit interval);
• A 0.5 ml syringe (it is intended for the administration of a dose between 30 and 50 units with a 1-unit interval);
• A 1.0 ml syringe (it is intended for the administration of a dose of more than 50 units with a 2-unit interval).

Please note that different doses of insulin require various sizes of syringes. Thus, let your wellness professionals define your correct dose (or, in other words, how much insulin you need) before choosing the right size of a syringe.

Therefore, the right insulin syringe size depends on the number of insulin units you need to receive.

Insulin Needle Length Selection and Gauge Size Choice

The length of insulin needles determines the depth of skin penetration. Therefore, it influences your personal comfort level.

In most cases, shorter needles are preferable for insulin injections since they should be administered right into the subcutaneous tissue.

Please note that both the needle length and the needle thickness matter when choosing the right needle for the injection of insulin. 

The gauge size of the actual needle, in its turn, also plays a role when it comes to the level of comfort a person feels during the injection of insulin.

According to peer-reviewed studies, thinner needles tend to bring less pain than thicker needles. However, it is strongly individual. Thus, it is the task of a person to define what needle gauge is the most comfortable for them.

Please note that the higher the gauge of the needle size is, the thinner the needle will be. For example, pen needles of 30G will be thinner than the ones with 27G.

A Bottom Line

Hopefully, now you know the most important information on how to choose between needles of different lengths and syringes of various sizes for your insulin injections. Remember that the correctly chosen size needle and syringe will make a big difference and ensure you both proper insulin access and a high level of comfort for a patient.

So, make sure to select wisely and feel free to order insulin online from Canada at Insulin.store. Stay healthy at all times!