How often do you change your needles/lancets?

No medical professional has ever said/encouraged/accepted that re-using needles is acceptable.

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Er... actually, my DSN has!!
She asked me once how often I changed my needles - only when I change the cartridge says me, slightly ashamed.
Her response was that ideally I should change it every time, but she was aware that would be a hard habit to get into, so if I could aim to change them at least every day, that would be better than nothing!!

I think, for some of us, re using needles is also a hang-over from the days when pens first came out and the needle-tips weren't free on prescription. I know that's where I have picked the habit up from!

Well, I reused needles for the past (whispers as I can't possibly be old enough!) 34 years, and never had a problem. I changed them regulalry, but not after every injection. I guess what we are seeing it that it depends when you were diagnosed, and what you are used to.

If you are told to change them everytime, then change them everytime. I am hoping that the cost has come down in recent years, and this is now best practice. It does seem that HCPs now have to say this, due to the fact that it does not seem to be OK these days to rely on peoples common sense, in case they try and sue you.

I change my lancets and my needles every single time I use them.

It's what I was told to do when I was first diagnosed so thats what I do.

I have a friend who is also diabetic and he changes his insulin needle at every cartridge change (about once a week roughly) and I think he changes his lancet extremely rarely!!

That's a good point.

I was told to always change lancets and needles when i was diagnosed. I was also told they apparently don't recommend to inject in arms anymore either. Also not to inject through clothes but i know some people still do this. So i guess times do change and what was top notch info back in the day is now scoffed at as ridiculous..

I can imagine in the future people laughing at insulin pumps that we use now, thinking what on earth is that :lol:

I guess it would be hard to break out of something your used to for so long.

I'm shocked that you wouldn't be encouraged to break the routine and change everytime. My nurse is a very 'abide by the guidelines' and likes to crack the whip i think :lol: but don't get me wrong she's lovely and awesome and no you can't have her :wink:

I'm shocked that you wouldn't be encouraged to break the routine and change everytime.

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I was a bit suprised too, I was expecting a telling off!! :wink:
I think that my DSN, while "whip-cracking" with the newbies, is a little bit more relaxed with her patients that have been doing it for years. It would be hard to break a 20+ year habit just like that, so as far as she is concerned any improvement is exactly that - an improvement. I imagine that once I am properly in the habit of daily-changing she will start working on me to hit the next level... :roll: :lol:

And I am ashamed to say that I still go through my clothes... she doesn't know that bit though!!!

squishee said:

I'm shocked that you wouldn't be encouraged to break the routine and change everytime.

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I was a bit suprised too, I was expecting a telling off!! :wink:
I think that my DSN, while "whip-cracking" with the newbies, is a little bit more relaxed with her patients that have been doing it for years. It would be hard to break a 20+ year habit just like that, so as far as she is concerned any improvement is exactly that - an improvement. I imagine that once I am properly in the habit of daily-changing she will start working on me to hit the next level... :roll: :lol:

And I am ashamed to say that I still go through my clothes... she doesn't know that bit though!!!

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haha, so she's sneakily cracking the whip :lol:

It's funny how all nurses have different ways of doing things, mean ones, kind ones, funny ones. When i was about to do my first injection i had one nurse being all sweet and kind on one side, then another being quite harsh saying i HAD to do it and if i was hungry i'd do it. Sort of like an angel and a devil :lol: I'm still not quite sure which one worked haha!

I do understand it must be hard to change a habit you do every day just like that, maybe i was a little naive and didn't think about it like that, i just really am freaked out at the though of re-using one and getting an infection or it breaking, i'm not the luckiest charm on the bracelet you see :lol:

There was a woman on the DAFNE course and she injected through her clothes, i didn't want to say anything at first as i think i was the only one that saw, but after a couple of days i sort of said 'are you meant to do that' She was a larger lady and she told me she did it because she didn't want anyone to see her belly but only did it when she was infront of people. I felt quite sorry for her and promised not to tell anybody, then the same afternoon the nurse said the no no's of injecting and through clothes was one of them, i kept my mouth zipped though. she was a lovely lady but very very shy.

Mind you i have an insulin pump now so i'd look very odd with a cannula through my t-shirt which of course i wouldnt be able to take of for two days :lol: :lol:

When i was about to do my first injection i had one nurse being all sweet and kind on one side, then another being quite harsh saying i HAD to do it and if i was hungry i'd do it.

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Argh, I had that too!!! One nurse was lovely - she was diabetic too, and let me do her injections a couple of times so I'd know how it felt to pierce skin.
I was terrified to look at the needle going in though (still am, that's parly why I go through my clothes, so I don't see it! ) - the other nurse tried to make me do my own injection, I wouldn't so she stuck the syringe in my leg and wouldn't take it out until I'd looked at it!!! :shock: my mum arrived on scene just in time - I was just starting to cry & panic. I was only 7, and still in hospital

Mind you i have an insulin pump now so i'd look very odd with a cannula through my t-shirt which of course i wouldnt be able to take of for two days

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Ewwwwww!!!!
:lol: :lol: :lol:

This is the advise I've recieved since being dx'd in 1989!

1989, While I was in hospital, it was single use, after I got home I was told to use reuse my syringes, I was also instructed to cut my BM test strips into 2 perferably 3!

I was also told to wripe the rubber bung of my insulin vial with surgical spirit/alcohol swap before drawing up my insulin, plus as swap the injection site before injecting..

About 1996 I was informed that I didn't need to swap my vials or my injection site just insure it was clean..

2007 I found myself preganat, put onto the bolus/regime given 2 insulin pens, told that I could leave my needles on the pens until I needed to change needles, guidence the same as my syringes..
sadly I misscarried, but kept on the new regime and had to buy my own needles, (£12 a box)

2008, January changing needles and injecting through cloths was disgused on the DAFNE course I attended, The advise given yes to same guidance on reusing needles, but adivised not to reuse more than 5 times... Injecting through cloths, it wasn't something they encouraged but if you were injecting through clean light cloth then shouldn't pose a lot of problems, but if you did injet through clothing to change the needle before the next injection!

Now it's not a case of failing to change habits, it's a bit of common sense about risk factors and the likelyhood of something might happen...

I am in more danger from getting an infection from a papercut, being prick by a rose bush thorn or the thistle while gardening.. Or the verious other minor cuts or abrasions that I recived then reusing a needle that started sterile and the only thing it's been in contact with is my skin and the securely covered...

If I have a contaminate on my skin that is going fester for several hours on my needle and cause problems on the following injection a fresh needle won't change a thing the problem already existed on my skin!

Both needles and lancets once and once only. When I first started to hack into my fingers I changed the lancet when it felt more like a brick than a sharp point .. that was until I gave myself a septic finger and now its every time I use a test strip. I use a lancing device (see below) equipped with an ejector so its easy to do when I dump the used test strip into the sharps box at the same time.
http://en.mylife-diabetescare.com/Lancet_device.html

I forgot to also mention that I use BD Microfine 33g lancets
http://www.bd.com/us/diabetes/page.aspx ... 02&id=7431