German Companies Dominate Needlestick Safety Inventions

March 2010 - United States
Medical device manufacturers B.Braun and Greiner Bio-One have developed very smart new needle technologies. The new components are passive safety, meaning that the safety mechanisms are automatically activated and require no additional training to operate.

B.Braun's Introcan Safety IV Catheter

"B. Sure! Get a line every time," demonstrates Braun's commitment to safety. Braun's Introcan Safety® technology provides reliable vein entry indication through flashback the moment the vein has been correctly entered. Of course nurses want to be certain of proper needle placement before proceeding with any invasive needle procedure! The Introcan Safety IV Catheter has other safety elements including a very smart needle bevel that assures as little flesh destruction as possible.

Braun's "Double Flashback Technology"

Braun's IV Catheter is the first to offer not one, but two visual indicators of immediate successful vein entry. One is in a flashback chamber, and the second is on the needle shaft itself. Wonderful technology!

Greiner's Safest Needle in the World

The Greiner Safety Brochure features three new passive safety technologies that offer 'optical venipunture control', or vein entry indication. The Vacuette Viso Plus, The Vacuette® Premium Safety System, and its buttefly or winged set with a "view window that increases safety." Featuring three new needles with visual indication demonstrates the importance of vein entry indication.

Safest Needle in the World

Greiner's sheathing technology makes its Vacuette Premium the safest blood collection needle in the world.

First, the visual indicator notifies that the needle is correctly inside the vein before attaching the specimen vial. This means no more prodding and poking to find a vein with the collection tube attached! This means no more collapsing veins, or sucking in nerves! And, once the collection tube is attacheds should the needle come out for any reason, a shealth automatically slides over the needle keeping the user safe!

Both companies offer these safety devices in the U.S.. By doing so, they are following the spirit, if not the letter, of the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act (2000).

BD's Vacutainer® Flashback Needle

BD's blood collection needle offers flashback before the introduction of the collection vial to the process. The function of vein entry indication provides greater confidence, greater comfort, as indication means no more needle probing and multiple attempts to find the vein as the patient is in pain! In BD's words, "Now blood collection is easier for everyone".

Unbelievable as this is, the giant American company that prides itself on being a U.S. company, BD's safest passive safety blood collection needle is only sold in Europe and Asia...not in the U.S..

If anyone knows the answer to this question, why BD is not promoting its safest blood collection needles to the American public, please notify us at: info@needlesticksafety.org
Put in the subject line: BD's Flashback Needle. Thank you.