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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / June 2004Anyone using 31-gauge x 5/16" insulin needles ?
I went to the drug store yesterday and they were out of the syringes with 30-gauge x 1/2" needles. So I bought a box with 31-gauge x 5/16" needles instead. I tried one of these yesterday and it seemed to work better than the ones with 30-gauge x 1/2" needles and my cat didn't feel anything at all. With a 1/2" needle I must try not to push it in all the way for fear that it would come out on the other side. But with a 5/16" needle I don't have to worry about this problem. But do I have to worry about the needle being too short ? If not then why don't most vets tell us to use these smaller ones ? Thanks in advance for your comments. Please reply to the newsgroup. Our needles are 28 gauge with a 1/2" needle. Our pharmacist has occasionally run out of the 1/2" and gives us the shorter ones instead, but we prefer to 1/2". With the shorter ones, it is hard to tell if you have delivered the insulin into the bloodstream and not just sub-cutaneously or even into the skin itself! Amaretto, our 13 year old diabetic seal point Siamese, is used to the 1/2" and does not fuss at all. We tend to press harder with the shorter needles and that does bother him! PegNDerek >With a 1/2" needle I must try not to push it in >all the way for fear that it would come out on [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] >Thanks in advance for your comments. Please reply >to the newsgroup. "Scientists' say intelligent life sprang from the sea. Really intelligent life returns to the sea now and then." >Our needles are 28 gauge with a 1/2" needle. Our pharmacist >has occasionally run out of the 1/2" and gives us the shorter [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >is used to the 1/2" and does not fuss at all. We tend to press >harder with the shorter needles and that does bother him! My vet told me that I just have to get it under the skin and that it's good enough as long as it doesn't leak. Do you think he may have given me a bad advice ? Yes, you do need to get under the skin without leaking, and into the bloodstream so the insulin gets delivered properly. The problem for us with the short needles is that we are not really sure if we are under the skin at all! Maybe Amaretto just has thicker skin! We find that we get a better "feel" for delivering the insulin with the 1/2" needles and Amaretto does not mind it at all. He definitely does not like it when we have to push at the short needle to make sure we are sub-cutaneous in the first place! The one piece of advice that most vets forget to give (or do not want to since they make more money when you bring the cat in to the office for a curve) is to be sure to home test the blood sugar everyday. We test Amaretto morning and night and do a full curve on him at least once a month. That way we are sure that the insulin is doing its job and that we are giving enough (and especially not to much) insulin. PegNDerek >My vet told me that I just have to get it under the skin and >that it's good enough as long as it doesn't leak. Do you think >he may have given me a bad advice ? "Scientists' say intelligent life sprang from the sea. Really intelligent life returns to the sea now and then." >Yes, you do need to get under the skin >without leaking, and into the bloodstream >so the insulin gets delivered properly. This is a statement that could be easily misunderstood and needs to be clarified. You're (unintentionally, I'm sure) making it sound as though the injection needs to go not only under the skin, but then directly into a vein, when in actuality it needs to *only* go under the skin. Megan  Signature"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray >Yes, you do need to get under the skin without leaking, and >into the bloodstream so the insulin gets delivered properly. >The problem for us with the short needles is that we are not >really sure if we are under the skin at all! Maybe Amaretto >just has thicker skin! >... 5/16" is about 8 mm. According to http://www.eden.rutgers.edu/~yiping/research.htm "The human skin ranges in thickness from 0.5 millimeter in the eyelid to more than 2 millimeters in the palms and soles." Do you think a cat's skin in the neck area can be 3 or 4 times as thick as human skin in the palms and soles ? >...With the shorter ones, > >it is hard to tell if you have delivered the insulin into the > >bloodstream and not just sub-cutaneously or even into the skin > >itself! ... Chester replied > My vet told me that I just have to get it under the skin and > that it's good enough as long as it doesn't leak. Do you think > he may have given me a bad advice ? Chester, When we had a diabetic cat, the vet taught us to make a tent with the skin and inject the insulin into the tent, thus under the skin. I'm sorry, I don't remember the size of the needle. I can't imagine trying to inject directly into the cat's bloodstream. It sounds dangerous to me. Sub-cutaneously makes more sense. But, I'm neither a vet nor a diabetic, so I could be wrong. I do know that we were taught, for our cat, to inject sub-cutaneously. Annie >But do I have to worry about the needle >being too short ? No. It's really just a matter of preference. I prefer the longer needles myself, but it doesn't matter which you use as long as the insulin gets where it's supposed to go. :-) Megan Signature"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray |
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