GB2258617A - Hypodermic needle guards - Google Patents

Abstract

A guard against needle stick comprises as apertured plate (20) of needle-prick resistant material (e.g. of paperboard) having an aperture (21) therein, in which a needle package 25 is located (e.g. by friction fit). <IMAGE>

Description

IMPROVEMENTS IN AND RELATING TO HYPODERMIC NEEDLES This invention relates to hypodermic needles and in particular to a method of using such needles and to a guard for such needles.

Needles for injecting substances into animal (including human) bodies are commonly individually supplied in sterile packages, used once and then disposed of. It is known to use a needle guard for supporting a packaged needle as it is applied to a syringe for use and for receiving it as it is subsequently removed from the syringe for disposal.

Known needle guards comprise flanged tubular structures, the tubular portion receiving a narrow closedended part of the sterile needle package that contains the shank and pointed end of the needle and the flanged portion protecting the enlarged end of the sterile package that is opened to expose the needle for use and that contains the needle collar used to engage the syringe.

The known needle guards are designed for re-use after sterilisation and are relatively expensive. Rigid plastics and flexible rubber mouldings are available and both serve the same purpose of facilitating the fixing of the needle to the syringe prior to an injection and protecting the injector against needle stick injury as the needle is returned to the erstwhile sterile package for subsequent disposal.

Unfortunately the reusable needle guards are not used as widely as they should be and a seriously high incidence of infection following needle stick injury occurs. With the growing threat of a spread of AIDS it is clearly important to find a way of encouraging wider use of needle guards.

This invention seeks to address that problem in a simple and original manner.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a method of supporting a sterile needle package while fitting the needle it contains onto a syringe prior to use and of receiving the needle after use for subsequent disposal which comprises supporting the package in a needle guard, is characterised in that the needle guard is an apertured plate of needle-prick resistant material surrounding the needle package.

By "needle-prick resistant material" is meant any material capable of preventing penetration by a hypodermic needle in the face of reasonable forces likely to be exerted on returning a once-used needle to its erstwhile sterilised tubular package. Thus the flange can be a plate of plastics material, metal, paperboard or stiffened fabric for example.

By using merely a plate for the needle guard and not a flanged tubular structure, the unit cost of the needle guard can be reduced to the point where the needle guard can be disposed of with the spent needle. The sterile needle package locates in the aperture of the plate obviating the need for a tubular portion of the guard, the narrow closedended part of the sterile needle package serving as the tubular portion of the needle guard.

Since there is no need to retain needle guards, or sterilise a needle guard for re-use, the method of the invention is expected to result in a reduced incidence of needle stick injuries to injectors (e.g. dentists, dental assistants, chiropodists, doctors and nurses).

The invention also extends to the combination of an apertured plate of needle-prick resistant material surrounding the narrow closed-ended tubular portion of an opened sterile needle package.

Paperboard is particularly suitable for the needleprick resistant material since it is very cheap and its disposal causes no problems. Board weights of between 1 and 5 grams, conveniently between 1 and 3 grams and more particularly around 2 grams are preferred. These weights would typically equate to thicknesses in the range 750 to some 4000 microns with preferred thicknesses between 1000 and 2000 microns.

A polygonal external shape (e.g. a hexagon or octagon) is preferred for the plate and this can provide a convenient and aesthetically pleasing shape to handle. The area between the aperture and outer periphery of the plate can be used for printed instructions and/or advertising. A preferred maximum dimension of the plate would lie in the range of 40 to 90 mm.

The aperture can be shaped and/or sized to provide a tight friction fit around the narrow closed-ended part of the needle package. A circular aperture appears to be suitable for most makes of needle.

The invention will now be further described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which:- Figures 1 and 2 show prior art reusable needle guards, Figure 3 shows a needle guard according to this invention, and Figure 4 shows how the guard of Figure 3 is used in practice.

The guard shown in Figure 1 is moulded from resilient rubber and has a cup-shaped open end 10, and a hollow tubular stem 11 closed at the lower end by a thin wall 12 provided with a cruciform cut. A typical unit cost would be 200p.

The guard shown in Figure 2 is moulded from rigid plastics material to exhibit a hexagonal shield 15 and integral tubular stem 16. A hexagonal bore 17 passes through both shield and stem. A typical unit cost would be 135p.

The guard shown in Figure 3 is a hexagonal plate 20 of paperboard 1500 microns thick (with a weight of around 2 grams) of some 68 mm across a diagonal and with a circular aperture 21 therein of diameter some 5 mm. The unit cost of the plate 20 could be less than 10p. The shape and size of the aperture 21 will be related to the needle packages with which it is to be used and in the case of a circular aperture could have a diameter in the range 4 to 9 mm.

Figure 4 shows the plate 20 fixed (e.g. by frictional engagement) to the opened end of an erstwhile sterile needle package 25. The package is supported between fingers 26 of an injector's hand with the plate 20 overlying the fingers and protecting the same from needle stick occasioned when reinserting the now-used needle into the open end of the package. Surprisingly, we have found there is no need for the stem (11 and 16) provided by a prior-art needle guide, since the package wall provides adequate protection from needle stick in the event that the needle obliquely enters the open end of the package 25.

Once the needle is safely relocated in the package 25 the needle, package and guard plate 20 can be discarded together.

In addition to a single layer of paperboard, the plate 20 could be of laminated board (e.g. with a pierce-resistant material laminated to paperboard to increase the needleprick resistance), double-faced corrugated paperboard, plastics sheeting.

Claims (17)

1. A method of supporting a sterile needle package while fitting the needle it contains onto a syringe prior to use and of receiving the needle after use for subsequent disposal which method comprises supporting the package in a needle guard, characterised in that the needle guard is an apertured plate of "needle-prick resistant material" (as hereinbefore defined) surrounding the needle package.

2. A method according to claim 1, in which the needleprick resistant material is a plastics material, metal, paperboard or stiffened fabric.

3. A method according to claim 1 or claim 2, in which the unit cost of the needle guard is reduced to the point where it is economic to dispose of the needle guide with the spent needle.

4. A method according to any preceding claim, in which the sterile needle package locates in the aperture of the plate of needle prick-resistant material obviating the need for a tubular portion of the guard, the narrow closed-ended part of the sterile needle package serving as the tubular portion of the needle guard.

5. A method of supporting a sterile needle package while fitting the needle it contains onto a syringe prior to use and of receiving the needle after use for subsequent disposal, substantially as herein described with reference to Figures 3 and 4 of the accompanying drawing.

6. For use in the method of any one preceding claim, the combination of an apertured plate of needle-prick resistant material surrounding the narrow closed-ended tubular portion of an opened sterile needle package.

7. The combination of claim 6, in which the needleprick resistant material is paperboard.

8. The combination of claim 7, in which the paperboard has a board weight of between 1 and 5 grams, conveniently between 1 and 3 grams and more particularly around 2 grams.

9. The combination of claim 7, in which the paperboard has a thickness in the range 750 to 4000 microns, preferably a thickness between 1000 and 2000 microns.

10. The combination of any one of claims 6 to 9, in which the apertured plate has a polygonal external shape.

11. The combination of claim 10, in which the apertured plate is hexagonal or octagonal.

12. The combination of any one of claims 6 to 11, in which the area between the aperture and outer periphery of the plate is used for printed instructions and/or advertising.

13. The combination of any one of claims 6 to 12, in which the maximum dimension of the plate lies in the range of 40 to 90 mm.

14. The combination of any one of claims 6 to 13, in which the aperture is shaped and/or sized to provide a tight friction fit around the narrow closed-ended part of the needle package.

15. The combination of any one of claims 6 to 14, in which the aperture is circular.

16. The combination of claim 6, in which the apertured plate is a hexagonal plate of paperboard 1500 microns thick with a weight of 2 grams and a circular hole therein of 5 mm diameter.

17. The combination of claim 6 substantially as herein described with reference to Figures 3 and 4 of the accompanying drawing.