With your non-dominant hand, make a skin tent
in the scruff of the neck
by grasping the skin between your fingers and thumb. The grip should be firm but not too tight (which could be painful). Lift your hand and the skin up from the animal’s neck to form a ‘tent’ in the skin.
What are 2 common sites for subcutaneous injections?
The most common injection sites are:
Abdomen: at or under the level of the belly button, about two inches away from the navel
.
Arm: back or side of the upper arm
. Thigh: front of the thigh.
How do you hold your skin for subcutaneous injections?
Should I pinch skin for subcutaneous injection?
Angle of injection
PHE (2013) recommends that subcutaneous vaccinations are given with the needle at a 45-degree angle to the skin and
the skin should be pinched together
(PHE, 2013).
What happens if you give a subcutaneous injection wrong?
Are there any complications? The most common complication of a subcutaneous injection is
pain near the injection site for 1 to 2 days afterward
. Pain near the injection site can happen when inserting the needle at the wrong angle, or when it moves slightly during the injection.
Why are subcutaneous injections given at a 45 degree angle?
Insert the needle quickly at a 45- to 90-degree angle.
Inserting quickly causes less pain to the patient
. Subcutaneous tissue is abundant in well-nourished, well-hydrated people. For patients with little subcutaneous tissue, it is best to insert the needle at a 45-degree angle.
How do you administer heparin SubQ?
- Pinch the skin lightly and put the needle in at a 45o angle.
- Push the needle all the way into the skin. Let go of the pinched skin. Inject the heparin slowly and steadily until it is all in.
What is the recommended abbreviation for subcutaneous administration?
Subcutaneous administration may be abbreviated as
SC, SQ, sub-cu, sub-Q, SubQ, or subcut
. Subcut is the preferred abbreviation to reduce the risk of misunderstanding and potential errors.
How deep should a subcutaneous injection be?
You may give an injection within the following area:
below the waist to just above the hip bone and from the side to about 2 inches from the belly button
. Avoid the belly button. Thigh: Uncover the entire leg.
What layer of skin is subcutaneous?
The hypodermis
(subcutaneous tissue) is the innermost layer of skin in your body. The dermis is the middle layer. The epidermis is the outermost layer.
Where do you inject in the thigh?
Typically, people who need to self-administer injections use the
vastus lateralis muscle
in the thigh. To locate the correct spot, imagine dividing the thigh vertically into three equal parts. Give the injection into the outer top part of the middle section.
What are the sites for intradermal injections?
The most common anatomical sites used for intradermal injections are
the inner surface of the forearm and the upper back below the scapula
. The nurse should select an injection site that is free from lesions, rashes, moles, or scars that may alter the visual inspection of the test results.
How much skin do you need to pinch for subcutaneous injection?
Pinch a
2-inch fold of skin
between your thumb and index finger. Hold the syringe the way you would a pencil or dart. Insert the needle at a 45 to 90 degree angle to the pinched-up skin. The needle should be completely covered by skin.
How do you give yourself a subcutaneous injection in the thigh?
Why did my subcutaneous injection bleeding?
If you see blood at the injection site after the needle is removed, you likely
nicked a small blood vessel at or below the skin surface, and blood is following the needle track out to the surface
.
Do you massage subcutaneous injections?
Don’t aspirate after inserting the needle (to prevent tissue damage, hematoma formation, and bruising). The likelihood of injecting into a blood vessel is small.
Don’t massage the site
, which can damage the underlying tissue and cause the medication to be absorbed faster than intended.
What is the difference between IM and SUBQ?
Subcutaneous (Sub-Q) injections
For most folks, this is
a more comfortable and less painful method than intramuscular injections
. Needles are relatively thin and short (typically a 25G needle, and 5⁄8 inches in length) since they go right underneath the skin.
Where can subcutaneous heparin be given?
The
abdomen, thigh, and arm
as sites for subcutaneous sodium heparin injections.
What is the best site for heparin injection?
Preferred site of injection is the
abdominal area
. Injections must be given 2 inches away from the umbilicus (see diagram). If you need another area to inject your heparin, you may use your thighs or buttocks.
Is insulin given SUBQ?
Insulin is injected subcutaneously
, which means into the fat layer under the skin. In this type of injection, a short needle is used to inject insulin into the fatty layer between the skin and the muscle.
Where is the best place to inject Lovenox?
Lovenox should not be injected into a muscle, an area close to the bone, in a vein, in the face or scalp, in the navel, or the hands or feet. It should only be injected into
the abdomen, the outer thigh, the buttocks, or the outer upper arm
.
What are subcutaneous sites?
A subcutaneous injection is a way to give certain medications using a needle. The subcutaneous tissue, also known as the hypodermis, is
the innermost (deepest) layer of skin
. It is made up of fat and connective tissue and helps the body control temperature.
What is one example of misinterpreting an abbreviation?
Misinterpreted as “
three times a day
” or “twice a week.” Patient’s medications have been prematurely discontinued when D/C, (intended to mean “discharge”) was misinterpreted as “discontinue,” because it was followed by a list of drugs. Misinterpreted as the Latin abbreviation “HS” (hour of sleep).
What does q1d mean?
• q.d., q1d – intended to mean “
every day
” but can be misread as “q.i.d.” or 4 times a. day.
