Needle Stick – CRPS

Needlestick Injury – Common Types

A needlestick injury is commonly thought of as being an accidental piercing of the skin by a sharp instrument. However, needlestick injuries can be far more severe and can vary greatly in type. Below you’ll find information on some of the more common types of needlestick injury and the side effects that can result.

• Incorrect Placement of Needlestick – The placement of the needle is extremely important. If injecting a medicine into the muscle or fat tissue, a doctor or nurse should ensure that the host site has sufficient tissue. This is particularly true when the patient is a female, as their physiques are generally different from men’s, and they are at greater risk for needlestick injury. A nurse or doctor should generally administer most injections to the hip or buttocks if the patient is female; though the deltoid (shoulders) is a common injection site in men, women tend to have less shoulder muscle, and the needlestick may cause unnecessary injury. If administering an injection into the buttocks, the medical professional should limit the treatment area to the top quarter of the muscle, where there tends to be more tissue. Injections in the bottom three quarters of the muscle can also cause injury. If a needle is placed in the wrong area, it can lead to permanent nerve damage, including sciatic nerve damage in the leg, as well as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). CRPS can occur as a result of damage to a nerve, and causes chronic, and often debilitating, pain in the affected limb, which can spread to other parts of the body.
• Volume or Delivery Errors – Another common contributing factor that can result in needlestick injury is the incorrect dosage of medication. If too much medication is administered (an incorrect volume) or medication is delivered too quickly, it can result in compartment syndrome, due to an increase in pressure in the affected area; burns, should the medication spread to surrounding tissues and have a potentially harmful pH; and necrosis (the premature death of affected cells). It can also result in Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS).
• Medical professionals owe a duty of care to their patients. Needlestick injuries are preventable and should not occur if common sense, experience, and a reasonable standard of medical care are taken into consideration by the professional administering the injection. Because needlestick injury is preventable, the mere occurrence of such an injury may indicate that a medical professional failed to act as a competent peer would in the same circumstances. In such case, a medical malpractice claim can be filed to hold the negligent party accountable and to seek compensation for the victim’s losses.