Needle Size??

[Susan Tyeson]

I have been taking insulin for just over a year now and still coming to terms with it. I was prescribed Omnican Fine Needles 4mm/31g for my insulin pen and this was working fine for me. When I collected my last prescription and began using the needles, I was finding it painful to inject. I then realised they were 32g needles. I contacted my GP and they advised they had been changed as a recommendation by Omnican prescribing service and are supposed to be finer and more comfortable than 31g! Unfortunately, I don't find them more comfortable but reluctantly they have agreed to change me back to 31g.

What I would like to know is 32g a finer needle, if so, why would it be more painful to inject.

Many Thanks

Susan

 

[Docb]

In 31g and 32g the "g" stands for guage, a very old fashioned way of measuring diameter of small round things like needles. I say old fashioned but it is still in use today. Perversely, the bigger the number the finer the needle so 32g is finer than 31g but you would need some very fancy kit to measure the difference because it is very small indeed.

Very, very early in my career I worked for a company that made needles for medical use and one of the "perks" was that you were obliged to take part in needle testing. You rolled both sleeves up, had a different needle jabbed into each arm and you had to say which hurt most! Of the things about a needle which affect pain, size is least important. Much more important is how well the point has been ground and whether the needle has a coating and the quality of the coating. Guess what, the cheaper the needle, the poorer the grind and coating and the more it hurt when jabbed in your arm. My guess it that Omnican have gone for a cheaper needle which happens to be 32g rather than 31g. They claim that the finer needle will be more comfortable (because that should be obvious shouldn't it) but don't mention that overall they are not as well made and as a consequence turn out to inflict more pain. Ask for some more expensive needles.

 

[Northerner]

In 31g and 32g the "g" stands for guage, a very old fashioned way of measuring diameter of small round things like needles. I say old fashioned but it is still in use today. Perversely, the bigger the number the finer the needle so 32g is finer than 31g but you would need some very fancy kit to measure the difference because it is very small indeed.

Very, very early in my career I worked for a company that made needles for medical use and one of the "perks" was that you were obliged to take part in needle testing. You rolled both sleeves up, had a different needle jabbed into each arm and you had to say which hurt most! Of the things about a needle which affect pain, size is least important. Much more important is how well the point has been ground and whether the needle has a coating and the quality of the coating and the more it hurt when jabbed in your arm. Guess what, the cheaper the needle, poorer the grind and coating. My guess it that Omnican have gone for a cheaper needle which happens to be 32g rather than 31g. They claim that the finer needle will be more comfortable (because that should be obvious shouldn't it) but don't mention that overall they are not as well made and as a consequence turn out to inflict more pain. Ask for some more expensive needles.

Thanks for the explanations @docg - I've always wondered what it stood for! 🙂 I've used novofine 6mm 31g since diagnosis (10 years). The needles have never hurt, just occasionally the insulin might sting a bit.

I wonder if you're right about the 32g being cheaper? Seems the most likely reason to change them, if I know the NHS! 😱 🙄

 

[Docb]

Thanks for the explanations @docg - I've always wondered what it stood for! 🙂 I've used novofine 6mm 31g since diagnosis (10 years). The needles have never hurt, just occasionally the insulin might sting a bit.

I wonder if you're right about the 32g being cheaper? Seems the most likely reason to change them, if I know the NHS! 😱 🙄

I'd put a large slice of chocolate cake on it......low carb of course.

 

[Susan Tyeson]

Awe thanks for the explanation, makes more sense now. I spoke to my Diabetic team and they also suggested that’s the reason why they are changing them and was willing to speak to my GP if it helped, luckily I managed to persuade them to give me my usual needles, thanks again for the replies