There are a few things to keep in mind when buying insulin syringes.
Insulin syringes are disposable and meant for one-time use. This helps make sure the needles are sterile to avoid the risk of infections from used needles.
It’s also important to rotate injection sites to avoid lipohypertrophy, or an abnormal fat deposit under the skin. It’s a common complication with daily insulin injections.
Insulin is given as a subcutaneous injection — or just under the skin — so the needle doesn’t go into muscle, which could affect your blood sugar levels.
The best syringe size for you depends on your insulin dose. Since your insulin dose may change, going up or down depending on your blood sugar levels, you may need multiple syringe sizes to adjust your dose as needed.
Insulin needles themselves also come in multiple sizes and thicknesses.
What are the sizes for insulin syringes?
Insulin syringes come in multiple sizes to deliver different doses of insulin.
The number lines in an insulin syringe, measured in milliliters (mL), stand for the following:
The size of the barrel determines how much insulin a syringe holds, and the needle gauge determines the needle thickness. Thinner needles may be more comfortable to inject for some people.
The length of a needle determines how far into your skin it penetrates. Needles for insulin only need to go just under your skin and not into muscle. Shorter needles are safer to avoid going into the muscle.