Injection technique

proper insulin delivery to the tissue

Avoidance of complications

The correct injection technique ensures the correct delivery of insulin into the tissue, the timely release of insulin in the body, and thus the avoidance of complications.

Choice of injection site

Injections have to be done into the fatty tissue of the skin (subcutaneous) to ensure best availability of the insulin.

Appropriate injection sites

Insulin can be injected in different sites of the body. Your doctor will recommend you to inject insulin in your thigh, the belly, the buttocks or in the upper arm. Within the chosen area it is recommended to change the injection sites. Otherwise skin irritations or swellings can occur and it will be more difficult to predict the effect of the insulin.

The 4-mm needle is long enough to traverse the skin and enter the subcutane tissue, with little risk of intramuscular (or intradermal) injection. Therefore, it is considered the safest pen needle for adults and children regardless of age, sex, ethnicity, or BMI.

The 4-mm needle should be inserted perpendicular to the skin (at 90° to the skin surface), not at an angle, regardless of whether a skinfold is raised.

Very young children (<=6 years old) and very thin adults should use the 4-mm needle by lifting a skinfold and inserting the needle perpendicularly into it. Others may inject using the 4-mm needle without lifting a skinfold.

^{Frid AH, Kreugel G, Grassi G, Halimi S, Hicks D, Hirsch LJ, Smith MJ, Wellhoener R, Bode BW, Hirsch IB, Kalra S, Ji L, Strauss KW. New Insulin Delivery Recommendations. Mayo Clin Proc. 2016 Sep;91(9):1231-55. doi: 10.1016/j.mayocp.2016.06.010. PMID: 27594187.}

Use a new pen needle for each injection!
With a fresh pen needle for each measurement, you yourself can ensure that the injection is as painless as possible. Pen needles have microfine tips which are damaged after only one use. With each further use, the pen needles become blunter and form small barbs. This makes further punctures more painful and can even damage the tissue, leading to lipohypertrophy.  The sliding coating on the pen needle will be worn away with the first injection, reuse may cause unnecessary pain.

Pay attention to hygiene.
The pen needle is a sterile disposable product and should only be used once. With each injection, tiny traces of blood and tissue, which can only be seen under a microscope, remain on the pen needle. We therefore advise against using the pen needle more than once.

Insulin is sensible against environmental impacts. Not used insulin should be stored in the “vegetables” compartment of the refrigerator at 4-8°C. Take care that it never freezes (even not for a short time). To prevent burning sensation caused by injection of cold insulin you can store the bottle, vial or syringe with insulin in use at room temperature making sure that it is protected against direct sunlight and heat. The full effect if insulin is ensured over a period of a minimum of 4 weeks.