Ellen & Kismet
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| Syringe Basics ... | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Some of the most common questions that caregivers have regarding the care of their feline diabetic is "What should I be looking for in a syringe?" and "What do all those numbers mean?". This short primer is designed to help answer some of those questions regarding syringes and the basic terminology associated with them. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "U100 Use Only Once": | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Most insulin syringes will be marked with this statement or something very similar. "U100" refers to the insulin concentration that this particular syringe is designed to measure accurately to the unit. Humulin and Novolin insulins, the most commonly prescribed, are all U100 concentrations. PZI insulin comes in various strengths - U40, U50 and U100 - and require either a special syringe designed for that particular strength or the caregiver must convert for the difference in insulin concentration and syringe designation if they choose to use a U100 syringe with a U40 or U50 insulin. "Use Only Once" refers to the fact that these syringes are designed to be sterile and sharpest for one injection. The risk of infection due to contamination of the needle is greater with each reuse. Also, any subsequent reuse will quickly dull the specially treated tip, causing the injections to become more painful. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "3/10cc, 1/2cc and 1cc": | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The term "cc" refers to the volume of insulin the syringe is designed to hold. "1cc" equals 100 units - thus a 1cc syringe will measure up to 100 units of insulin, a "1/2cc" syringe will measure up to 50 units of insulin and a "3/10cc" syringe will measure up to 30 units of insulin. Because cats usually require only small doses of insulin, a "3/10cc" syringe is ideal because it is easier to accurately measure just a few units at a time due to the spacing between the unit markings. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "28, 29 and 30 Gauge Needles": | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The term "gauge" refers to the needle thickness. This is one area that seems to cause the most confusion because the rule of thumb is: the higher the number, the thinner the needle. Thus, a 30 gauge needle is thinner than a 29 gauge and similarly, a 29 gauge needle is thinner than a 28 gauge. For maximum comfort, I recommend 30 gauge needles, though there may be some "tough-skinned" kitties out there that need a 29 gauge needle in order to penetrate the skin layer consistantly and successfully. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1/2 inch and 5/16 inch needles: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Insulin syringes usually come with needles in two lengths, 1/2 inch and 5/16 inch. The 1/2" needles are the standard size and are the most common. The 5/16" needles, otherwise known as "shorts", are slightly shorter than the standard needles. Choice of needle lengths is based on caregiver preference. Some prefer the 1/2" "standards" because their kitties have long fur or have thicker skin. Others prefer the 5/16" "shorts", because they are less likely to "shoot through the tent" when administering a dose. My suggestion is to purchase a few of each type and see which works best for your kitty consistantly. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Half-Unit Markings": | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The majority of insulin syringes on the market today are designed to accurately measure whole units of insulin. However, there are a couple of companies, namely BD, Monoject/Reli-On and Precision Dose, who have designed what is known as a "half-unit marked" syringe. What this means is that the syringe has marks that not only designate whole unit dosing, but they also have marks indicating half-unit increments as well. These are usually only available in the 3/10cc size, but depending on the company, they may come in 1/2" and/or 5/16" needle lengths. These syringes are very useful in dosing feline diabetics because it is not unusual for the regulatory dose to end up being fractional. In the same respect, they are also extremely useful in making .5u increases in dose as recommended by some veterinarians. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Created 6/18/03 Ellen & Kismet |
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