The diseases include:
A needle-stick injury (NSI) occurs when a needle or other sharp object (e.g. blade) which has a patient’s blood on it accidentally cuts someone else’s skin. While the immediate impact of an NSI may seem trivial, its implications can be very serious indeed.
What is a Needle Stick Injury?
A Needle Stick Injury (NSI) occurs when a needle or other sharp object, such as a blade, which has a patient’s blood on it accidentally cuts someone else’s skin. The term ‘sharps injuries’ is often used interchangeably with ‘NSIs’. While the immediate impact of a NSI may seem trivial, its implications can be very serious. The main risk posed by NSIs from hypodermic sharps is exposure to blood borne viruses (BBVs). Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV are the ones that get the most coverage, but many more diseases can be spread through NSIs as shown below
In 2010 The American Nurses Association issued a fact sheet that gives the who, where, when and how of NSIs. Hypodermic syringes account for more NSI’s than any other medical device (about 40% of the total)
Diseases transmitted by needle stick injury
Beside the major concerns of HIV, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C, needle stick injuries have also transmitted many other diseases involving viruses, bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms to health care workers, laboratory researchers, prison staff, waste disposal, and veterinarian staff.
The diseases include:
Many of these diseases were transmitted in rare, isolated events. They still demonstrate, however, that needle stick injuries can have serious consequences. In addition to Blood-bourne diseases, there could also be consequences of an NSI from genetically modified drugs and some chemotherapy treatments.
Are NSIs still an issue?
Despite there being legislation in the USA, European Countries and many other countries around the world, NSIs remain a global problem.
Collection of data on NSIs varies greatly from country to country, and even where accurate data is recorded, there is evidence that many instances are not reported.
Recent data indicates that there are 400 million aspirations of blood per annum in the USA and there are more than 70,000 NSIs from these procedures. More than 1,000 people are infected with a dangerous condition each year.
Current solutions
Companies are using different approaches to minimise the number of NSIs and protect the end user. The following is C-Major Medical’s analysis.
There are two broad approaches to reducing NSIs – either cover the needle after use (protective shields), or retract it so that it is no longer accessible.
Protective shields
Sheath (active)
Clip (active)
Syringe with retractable needle
Manual (active)
Automatic (passive)
Protective Shields
These are the simplest solutions and the lowest cost point of the range of safety syringes. However, their approach is so simplistic that on many occasions the safety mechanism does not work and most types do not meet the guidelines outlined below. Issues with this approach include:
Sheath
Clip
A plastic cover is provided with and pre-attached to the syringe or needle
Syringe with retractable needle
The preferred mechanism, the needle is retracted back into the syringe, ensuring no possibility of a NSI post-retraction.
The two types of mechanism include:
Manual
Automatic
This type of product is currently the preferred format, and even though more expensive, the designs start to address some of the user requirements for a safety syringe. However, current designs do have significant shortcomings. These include:
C-Major Medical’s design concept was based upon user input. The key design criteria included:
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