Can I Reuse My Syringe?

There have been dramatic improvements in the design of syringes. Not only are the needles attached but they are thinner, sharper and lubricated for ease in entering the skin. Although insulin syringes are designed to be used once and then discarded, many people reuse syringes. Some use one syringe per day even if they take three or four injections. Others use the same syringe until the numbers on the syringe disappear. 

A MATTER OF EXPENSE? OR THRIFT? 

Most prescription plans pay for syringes as part of insulin therapy. It is interesting that most people who reuse syringes have a prescription plan that pays for their syringes. So, they reuse syringes because of thrift, not expense or cost. But, there is a cost of reusing syringes and you are the one who pays. 

WHO PAYS FOR REUSE? 

Manufacturers have continued to design thinner, more comfortable needles. Needles are described according to length and gauge. Gauge refers to the width of the needle. The higher the gauge-number the thinner the needle so a 31 gauge needle is thinner than a 25 gauge needle. To make the width of the needle smaller, the wall of the needle had to become thinner too. The thinner walls are strong enough for single use but not for repeated use. These fine needles that make for a more comfortable injection are easily damaged with repeated use. The needle tip bends like a hook, and the microscopic end can actually break off into your skin. Added to that, a deformed needle can cut your skin causing bruising and bleeding at the injection site. Fortunately, few infections have been reported with syringe reuse. Some people, fearful of infection, decide to wipe the needle with an alcohol swab before using it. The result? They remove the lubricant designed to help the needle pass through the skin more gently and actually inject a piece of steel into their skin. Use of the alcohol has no impact on avoiding infection.

WHAT ABOUT PEN NEEDLES?

Insulin can also be delivered by a device that looks like a pen instead of using the traditional bottle of insulin and syringe. Keeping the needle attached and reusing it damages the needle. Reusing a pen needle can also affect the dose of insulin delivered by the pen. If you carry the pen with the needle attached and move from a warm place to a cool place, the insulin in the pen will shrink. This pulls air into the pen cartridge. So you may think that you injected 25 units of insulin when you actually received less. Thus, swings in blood sugar can be due to inaccurate insulin doses. 

GUIDELINES FOR COMFORTABLE INJECTION 

Here’s some tips to make the process more comfortable: 

• Remember to grasp a fold of skin. 
• Put the needle straight into the skin (not at an angle). 
• Press down on the plunger (or tip of the pen) to inject the insulin. 
• Count for five seconds so the insulin doesn't leak out. 
• Remove the needle and hold the alcohol swab to the site. 
• Ask your health care provider or diabetes educator about the best needle length for you. Needle size can affect the comfort and absorption of insulin.

Article by Virginia Peragallo-Dittko RN, MA, CDE, Director of the Diabetes Education Center, Winthrop University Hospital