I’m having a problem with the size of needle used for b12 injection in my arm. Can anyone advise me, I have it in the upper arm with a 22g at present but it’s really painful. Please help thank you .kate
Needle sizing . : I’m having a problem... - Pernicious Anaemi...
Needle sizing .
I would find self-injecting into an arm extremely difficult . Have you a special reason for using your arm? . Self-injectors usually use their thighs. You inject into the Vastus Lateralis muscle which is nearest the surface in the middle outer third of the thigh . That gives you a much larger area to inject into . Also good to swap thighs . I use a 25 G x 1inch needle for I,M. 25 G is finer than 22 G .
Some people prefer to inject sub-cutaneously , which means that they can use an even finer and shorter needle. namely 30 G x 1/2 inch . They then inject into their stomach fat , or into their thigh . You could look this up on the internet .
Those needles can be obtained from medisave.co.U.K.
You can obtain a numbing cream from Amazon.co.U.K.
I would suggest you try a 1 inch 25g needle. Always remember the higher the needle gauge number, the thinner the needle, which means less painful. Another thing that will help is if you use a 18g needle to dispense the B12 and then switch to the 25g to inject.
My daughter’s clinic gives her injections in her arm, and she has soreness from that area as well. I inject into my buttocks. I tried injecting in my thighs, but it was problematic. I’ve just found it easier, even if I don’t switch sides. I can do it laying down or standing with no problem, so you might want to try that. When having to alternate sides, you can use an auto-injector for the side you use for your no dominant hand. I currently use a 25g 1.5” needle, and it’s quite comfortable.
Thanks for the replies. I’ll try the other options.
Injecting into the buttocks isn’t recommended as there are large blood vessels and nerves that can be hit. I use the rectus femoris.
nursingtimes.net/clinical-a...
I appreciate the info. I’ll definitely try the thigh area again. The way I’d do it has been the way I always have, and was taught, but I’m open to trying new things.
I inject mine into the outer thigh. As an ex nurse I would say no buttocks as you can hit a nerve. When we used to give injections into buttocks the rule was upper outer quadrant but think that’s hard to do on self!
I use a 25 G 5/8th inch needle with a 3 ml syringe injecting into thighs. The dose is 1 ml but I find the 3 ml syringe easier to manage.
I use a 23 gauge by 30 mm long needle to draw up the B12 from the ampoule and a 25 gauge by 16 mm long to inject into the rectus femoral muscle. This is what I have used with great success for years - sometimes there is a bit of pain but nothing much now and again - relaxing fully from the shoulders down greatly reduces the chances of pain.