I read the article and looked at the pictures and it is really hard to tell because the images are magnified and a used syringe needle probably does not look this way to the naked eye. I would need to actually reuse a syringe 6 times and then look at it through a magnifying glass to fairly compare them. I have reused syringes when money was tight but I don't reuse syringes anymore. I don't like to keep putting the used syringe back into the insulin vial, in my opinion, that can contaminate the insulin. I think it is OK to reuse syringes a few times but how many times you want to reuse a syringe is a personal choice.
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One practical thing that might make a difference. I load up a full 100 unit syringe at a time, but only use from 2 to a max of 14 units at a time. This is really handy. I carry a preloaded syringe to work in a toothbrush case for travelers.
That might help because I think the rubber at the top of the vial is a lot tougher than my skin, and that way the syringe doesn't have to go through it so often. Also the rubber seems to be softer in the middle than around the edge. If anyone is getting damaged or dulled syringes maybe that's where it happens?
Here's a quote from the largest study I've read about reusing syringes. It covered about 560,000 injections, equal to 5 a day for more than 300 years.
"A Prospective Study of the Hazards of Multiple Use of Disposable Syringes and Needles in Intensified Insulin Therapy" by R. Chlup, E. Marsalek, and W. Burns. Published in Diabetic Medicine. 7(7):624-7, 1990 Aug.
"Each syringe was reused for 1 to 12 weeks; each needle for 4 to 200 injections (average 41) within 1 to 40 days (average 11.2). In a total of 560,000 of injections no relevant signs of infection could be found. In rare cases slight redness not exceeding 4 mm square could be seen at the injection sites."
"Thus, the repeated use of syringes and needles in one diabetic patient may be recommended as a convenient and safe approach in insulin administration."
They also mentioned in the study that there was a wide variety in the hygiene of the people taking part of it. Some of them were quite clean, and some were at the other end of that spectrum.
So basically it seems to be extremely safe. In fact the rate of infections is the same for people reusing syringes as it is for people using new syringes. If you are going to puncture the skin there is some risk.
At least, Injections - 560,000, Infections - 0 is a nice lopsided score.
An interesting part of the study related to those photos is the syringes used 200 times for up to 12 weeks. How is the syringe in the photo of the 6th injection going to get to 7, let alone 200? It's not humanly possible. With damage happening at that rate there wouldn't even be a millimeter of needle left.
I'm near sighted, and guessing that some of the posters are far sighted maybe? To me it's quite easy to see and quite clear. I only did have 2 syringes out of quite a few hundred ever got anything like the damage they show from one injection. The magnification doesn't matter much if you just look at the size of the hook compared to the size of the needle.
And the overall average from the study is interesting. 41 injections per syringe certainly does bring the cost down.
There's more to it, but tired of typing
bye for now
lia
That might help because I think the rubber at the top of the vial is a lot tougher than my skin, and that way the syringe doesn't have to go through it so often. Also the rubber seems to be softer in the middle than around the edge. If anyone is getting damaged or dulled syringes maybe that's where it happens?
Here's a quote from the largest study I've read about reusing syringes. It covered about 560,000 injections, equal to 5 a day for more than 300 years.
"A Prospective Study of the Hazards of Multiple Use of Disposable Syringes and Needles in Intensified Insulin Therapy" by R. Chlup, E. Marsalek, and W. Burns. Published in Diabetic Medicine. 7(7):624-7, 1990 Aug.
"Each syringe was reused for 1 to 12 weeks; each needle for 4 to 200 injections (average 41) within 1 to 40 days (average 11.2). In a total of 560,000 of injections no relevant signs of infection could be found. In rare cases slight redness not exceeding 4 mm square could be seen at the injection sites."
"Thus, the repeated use of syringes and needles in one diabetic patient may be recommended as a convenient and safe approach in insulin administration."
They also mentioned in the study that there was a wide variety in the hygiene of the people taking part of it. Some of them were quite clean, and some were at the other end of that spectrum.
So basically it seems to be extremely safe. In fact the rate of infections is the same for people reusing syringes as it is for people using new syringes. If you are going to puncture the skin there is some risk.
At least, Injections - 560,000, Infections - 0 is a nice lopsided score.
An interesting part of the study related to those photos is the syringes used 200 times for up to 12 weeks. How is the syringe in the photo of the 6th injection going to get to 7, let alone 200? It's not humanly possible. With damage happening at that rate there wouldn't even be a millimeter of needle left.
I'm near sighted, and guessing that some of the posters are far sighted maybe? To me it's quite easy to see and quite clear. I only did have 2 syringes out of quite a few hundred ever got anything like the damage they show from one injection. The magnification doesn't matter much if you just look at the size of the hook compared to the size of the needle.
And the overall average from the study is interesting. 41 injections per syringe certainly does bring the cost down.
There's more to it, but tired of typing
bye for now
lia
You can't get hepatitis from yourself. I don't think anyone here s suggesting we share needles etc... with others.
So..in essence, you are making your own multi-use pen. Am i understanding correctly? While I can see the cost benefit of doing this...my concern is that it would be too easy to make a mistake and accidently overdose or underdose yourself. When you get your insulin in a prefilled pen instead of the vial there is a feature on it that allows you to set the dose before you inject. This way you cant accidentally inject too much . If you get your insulin in pre-filled pens you have the option of using a fresh needle everytime, or some people do use the same one a few times. I guess that is personal choice as everyone seems to agree.One practical thing that might make a difference. I load up a full 100 unit syringe at a time, but only use from 2 to a max of 14 units at a time. This is really handy. I carry a preloaded syringe to work in a toothbrush case for travelers.
That might help because I think the rubber at the top of the vial is a lot tougher than my skin, and that way the syringe doesn't have to go through it so often. Also the rubber seems to be softer in the middle than around the edge. If anyone is getting damaged or dulled syringes maybe that's where it happens?
Here's a quote from the largest study I've read about reusing syringes. It covered about 560,000 injections, equal to 5 a day for more than 300 years.
"A Prospective Study of the Hazards of Multiple Use of Disposable Syringes and Needles in Intensified Insulin Therapy" by R. Chlup, E. Marsalek, and W. Burns. Published in Diabetic Medicine. 7(7):624-7, 1990 Aug.
"Each syringe was reused for 1 to 12 weeks; each needle for 4 to 200 injections (average 41) within 1 to 40 days (average 11.2). In a total of 560,000 of injections no relevant signs of infection could be found. In rare cases slight redness not exceeding 4 mm square could be seen at the injection sites."
"Thus, the repeated use of syringes and needles in one diabetic patient may be recommended as a convenient and safe approach in insulin administration."
They also mentioned in the study that there was a wide variety in the hygiene of the people taking part of it. Some of them were quite clean, and some were at the other end of that spectrum.
So basically it seems to be extremely safe. In fact the rate of infections is the same for people reusing syringes as it is for people using new syringes. If you are going to puncture the skin there is some risk.
At least, Injections - 560,000, Infections - 0 is a nice lopsided score.
An interesting part of the study related to those photos is the syringes used 200 times for up to 12 weeks. How is the syringe in the photo of the 6th injection going to get to 7, let alone 200? It's not humanly possible. With damage happening at that rate there wouldn't even be a millimeter of needle left.
I'm near sighted, and guessing that some of the posters are far sighted maybe? To me it's quite easy to see and quite clear. I only did have 2 syringes out of quite a few hundred ever got anything like the damage they show from one injection. The magnification doesn't matter much if you just look at the size of the hook compared to the size of the needle.
And the overall average from the study is interesting. 41 injections per syringe certainly does bring the cost down.
There's more to it, but tired of typing
bye for now
lia
There are diseases that can be transmitted from self reuse of dirty syringes. I have excellent insurance. My syringes are 10 cents each and disposal is free. I even get a free sharps container.You can't get hepatitis from yourself. I don't think anyone here s suggesting we share needles etc... with others.
If times got tight, I'd go to "Needle Exchange" for those addicted to IV drugs. They pass them out free, no questions.
It is great that you have good insurance and have figured out alternatives so you never need to reuse needles/syringes. I am in the same position insurance-wise and have not yet had to reuse BUT as mentioned above, another consideration is "generating waste"... which some see as an important issue.
Another post suggested practical reasons for reuse, relating to carrying these supplies around.As evidenced by this thread, clearly there ARE people who do reuse needles/syringes; so perhaps you could shed more light on the "diseases that can be transmitted from self reuse of dirty syringes"... as this seems important to know about. As above, I don't see anyone suggesting sharing supplies between different people, so I am puzzled as to how I could give myself an infection that I must by definition, already have?
Obviously the introduction of an outside infection from the table surface for example, is always a risk with any injection but I don't see that reuse of supplies necessarily increases that risk, or that reuse should automatically mean "dirty"... so long as the technique is sound?I think we as a society have become way too germ-phobic when clearly we evolved surrounded by "bugs"... even on our skin and inside our gut. This is why we have an immune system.
Yeah, what HE said!You can't get hepatitis from yourself. I don't think anyone here s suggesting we share needles etc... with others.
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