NAPPSI Compiles List of Sharps-Safety Devices

NAPPSI Compiles List of Sharps-Safety Devices

TheNational Alliance for the Primary Prevention of Sharps Injuries (NAPPSI) hascreated a comprehensive list of needlestick-safety devices. NAPPSI's compilationdraws upon the list of needlestick-safety devices created by the ExposurePrevention Information Network (EPINet) at the International Healthcare WorkerSafety Center of the University of Virginia. The EPINet list categorizes devicesby their medical application. The new NAPPSI lists complements this approach bymaking one simple but valuable change: it categorizes devices within eachmedical application by whether they offer primary prevention or secondaryprevention against needlesticks. This innovative approach enables healthcareworkers (HCWs) and purchasing managers to easily identify primary-preventiondevices that provide the greatest measure of protection against injury byeliminating the use of medical sharps.

"Our new list is intended to supplement the valuable information alreadyprovided by the EPINet list," said Steve Bierman, MD, founder and presidentof NAPPSI. "NAPPSI is proud to lead the way in helping HCWs and other keydecision makers identify first-choice technologies -- that is, products thatemploy primary prevention to protect against medical sharps injuries."

Primary prevention practices and technologies are the first line of defenseagainst needlestick injury. Primary prevention reduces or eliminates the need tointroduce sharps into the workplace -- significantly lowering HCWs exposure tobloodborne pathogens. Secondary prevention practices and technologies, bycomparison, render safer those sharps that must be introduced into theworkplace.

Primary prevention is widely recognized as the most effective way to protectHCWs against the accidental needlesticks that are a frequent threat asclinicians care for patients. The National Institute for Occupational Safety andHealth (NIOSH) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) hasrecommended that HCWs "avoid the use of needles where safe and effectivealternatives are available." In a recent letter to NAPPSI, NIOSH confirmedthat the agency recommends "a comprehensive prevention program thatconsiders all aspects of the work environment and includes both primary andsecondary prevention measures."

"Because they lack information about primary prevention, hundreds ofAmerican healthcare workers contract serious and potentially fatal diseases eachyear," said Bierman.

More than 800,000 U.S. HCWs suffer medical sharps injuries every year. Theseinjuries can lead to serious and life-threatening diseases such as hepatitis Cand AIDS.

The following is the NAPPSI Primary and Secondary Prevention: NeedlestickSafety Device List and Notification to Clinicians on Sharps Injury Protection(devices marked with an asterisk have been added by NAPPSI to the EPINet list,and have been identified by NAPPSI as being primary or secondary preventiondevices).

INJECTION EQUIPMENT
Primary prevention

• Needle-free jet injection: Biojector 2000, Bioject, Inc.;

• VITAJET 3, Bioject, Inc.; Injex Needle-Free Injector, Equidyne Systems; Medi-Jector Vision, Antares Pharma, Inc.; SyriJet

• Keystone Industries; J-TIP*, National Medical Products, Inc.

Secondary prevention

• Needle guards/sliding sheath/sleeve: B-D Safety Glide Shielding Hypodermic Needle, Becton Dickinson; B-D Safety Lok Syringe, Becton Dickinson; BD SafetyGlide Syringe, Becton Dickinson; Protector Syringe and Safety Cap System

• InjectiMed, Inc.; Gettig Guard - Safety Needle, Gettig Pharmaceutical Instrument Co.;

• Monoject Safety Syringe, Kendall Healthcare Products Co.; Safe-Mate Safety Needle for dental use, MedPro, Inc.; Sterimatic Safety Needle, Sterimatic Medical Corp.; Univec Sliding Sheath, Univec; DonorCare Needle Guard, ITL Corporation Pty. Ltd.;

• Innoject Auto-Injector,

• Innoject Inc.; DeHardCap Safety Needle,

• DeHardCap Medical, LLC; 5cc Safety Syringe,

• Taiject Medical Device Co. Ltd.; Duopro Safety Syringe,

• Meditech, Inc.;

• Needle guards-hinged recap: Needle-Pro, SIMS Portex, Inc.; SurGuard, Termumo Medical Corporation

• Retractable needles: Elite Safety Syringe, Medi-Hut Co., Inc.; NMT Safety Syringe, New Medical Technology, Inc.; Vanish Point Syringe, Retractable Technologies, Inc.; Vanish Point Syringes,

• Abbott Laboratories; Safety 1st Safety Syringe; Safety 1st Medical, Inc.

• Pre-filled syringes: Safety Tip-Lok, GlaxoSmithKline; BD PosiFlush Pre-filled syringes, Becton Dickinson; Carpuject Therapeutic Medications Prefilled Syringes with Luer Tip,

• Abbott Laboratories; Pre-filled Saline Flush Syringes,

• B. Braun Medical Inc.

MEDICATION VIAL ADAPTORS
Primary prevention

• Abbott Laboratories; Baxter Healthcare Corp.; Beckton Dickinson; BIOJECT, Inc.; B. Braun Medical; Edge Medical; ICU Medical

• Tri-State Hospital Supply; National Medical Products, Inc.

IV MEDICATION DELIVERY SYSTEMS:
Primary prevention

• Needleless IV access-blunted cannulas: LifeShield System, Abbott Laboratories;

• Interlink IV Access System, Baxter/Becton Dickinson; BD Twinpak Dual Cannula Device, Becton Dickinson; Ultrasite Needle-free IV System, B. Braun Medical; Posiflow IV Access System, Becton Dickinson

• Needleless valve/access ports and connectors: SmartSite Needle-Free System, Alaris Medical Systems; Safsite System, B. Braun Medical; Ultrasite System,* B. Braun Medical; PosiFlow, BD; Clave connector, ICU Medical; AVI Checkvalve, 3M Health Care; Life Guard Safety Huber Needle, Horizon Medical

Secondary prevention

• Prefilled medication cartridge with safety needles: LifeShield Abboject protected recessed needle, Abbott Laboratories; Carpuject with InterLink blunt cannula or Luer Lock, Sanofi Winthrop/Becton Dickinson/Baxter; Cartridge Needle-ProTM hinged recap device, SIMS/Portex; Tubex Blunt Point cartridge unit, Wyeth-Ayerst; MIN-I-JET with Stick-Gard recessed needle or InterLink blunt cannula, International Medication Systems (IMS); Ansyr Emergency Syringe with Luer Access Tip,

• Abbott Laboratories; LifeShield Emergency Syringe with Protected Needle,

• Abbott Laboratories; Saline Flush Syringes with Luer Access Tip,

• Abbott Laboratories; Carpuject Pre-filled Flush Syringes with Luer Access and Blunt Tips,

• Abbott Laboratories; Carpuject Therapeutic Medications Pre-filled Syringes with Luer Access and Blunt Tips,

• Abbott Laboratories; Aluer Pre-filled Flush Syringes with Luer Access and Blunt Tips,

• Abbott Laboratories; LifeShield Medication Vials with Prepierced Reseal Access,

• Abbott Laboratories; ADD-Vantage Drug Delivery System,

• Abbott Laboratories

• FirstChoice Premixes,

• Abbott Laboratories

• Needle guards for pre-filled medication cartridges: UltraSafe Needle Guard, SafetySyringes, Inc.; UltraSafe Injection System, SafetySyringes, Inc.

• Recessed/protected needle: LifeShield Connector, Abbott Laboratories; Needle Lock Device, Baxter Healthcare Corp.; Versa-Lok and Pro-Lok, Beech Medical; Click Lock and Piggy Lock, ICU Medical; Protected Needle System: McGaw Inc.; Centurion Uni-Guard Piggy Back Connector, Tri-State Hospital Supply Corp.

IV INSERTION EQUIPMENT
Secondary prevention

• Shielded or retracting peripheral IV catheters: Introcan Safety IV catheter, B. Braun Medical; BD Insyte Autoguard, Beckton Dickenson; BD Insyte-N Autoguard Shielded IV Catheter for Small Vein Access, Becton Dickinson; BD Angiocath-N Autoguard Shielded IV Catheter for Small Vein Access, Becton Dickinson; IV Safe

• M. C. Johnson Co., Inc.; BD Saf-T-Intima IV Catheter Safety System, Becton Dickinson; BD Angiocath Autoguard Shielded IV Catheter, Becton Dickinson; Protectiv and Protectiv Plus IV Catheter safety system, Johnson & Johnson Medical, Inc.; Protectiv* Acuvance

• I.V. Safety Catheter, Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc./Johnson & Johnson Medical, Inc.

• Secure IV peripheral venous catheter: Vadus, Inc.; Unolok-Plus Safety Infusion Sets, Myco Medical Supplies, Inc.

• Shielded midline IV catheters: Biovue PICC/Midline catheter with Protectiv Safety Introducer, Johnson & Johnson Medical, Inc.

BLOOD COLLECTION EQUIPMENT:
Primary prevention

• Plastic blood collection tubes: Becton Dickinson; Greiner Meditech, Inc.; Kendall Healthcare Products Co.; Termumo Medical Corporation;

• Plastic blood collection tubes with screw caps: S-Monovette Blood Collection System, Sarstedt, Inc

• Plastic fingerstick sampling blood collection tube(s): Microvette Capillary Blood Collection System, Starstedt, Inc.; Multivette Capillary Blood Collection System, Starstedt, Inc.

• Arterial Blood Sampling: Line Draw Plus Arterial Blood Sampling Kits,

• Portex, Inc.; SafeSet, Abbott Laboratories

Secondary prevention

• Hinged recapping needle: BD Eclipse Blood Collection Needle, Becton Dickinson; Needle-Pro venous/arterial needle protection, SIMS Portex

• Retracting needle: Vanish Point blood collection tube holder, Retractable Technologies, Inc.; Vanish Point blood collection tube holder,

• Abbott Laboratories;

• S-Monovette Needle Protector, Starstedt, Inc.

• Self-blunting needle: Punctur-Guard blood collection needles; Bio-Plexus, Inc.

• Shielded winged steel needle butterfly blood collection needles: BD Vacutainer Safety-Lok Blood Collection Set, Becton Dickinson; Angel Wing Safety Needle System, Kendall Healthcare Products Co.; VAKU-8 Plus Safety Blood Collection Set, Myco Medical Supplies, Inc.; SurshieldT Safety Blood Collection Set,

• Termumo Medical Corporation

• Single-use sliding sheath blood collection needle and tube holder: ProGuard II,

• Kendall Healthcare; Safe Point Vac and Safe Point M-D, North American Medical Products (NAMP): Saf-T-Clik, MPS Acacia; Sterimatic Safety Needle, Sterimatic Ltd.

LANCETS
Primary prevention

• Laser Lancet: Lasette, Cell Robotics International, Inc.

Secondary prevention

• Retracting lancet: Single-Let, Bayer Corp.; BD Quikheel Lancet, Becton Dickinson; BD Genie Lancet, Becton Dickinson; Haemolance, Hypoguard; Haemolance Plus, Hypoguard; Tenderfoot heel incision device, International Technidyne Corp.; Tenderfoot automated skin incision device, International Technidyne Corp.; Monojet Monoletter safety lancet, Kendall Healthcare Products Co.; Glucolet 2 retracting lancet, Miles Inc., Diagnostic Division; Unistik 2, Owen-Mumford, Inc.; EZ-Lets II, Palco Labs

• Accu-Check Safe-T-Pro, Roche Diagnostics; Safe-T-Lance Plus, Futura Medical Corp.

• EZ-Lets II,

• Plalco Labs, Inc.

• Strip Lancet: SafetyStrip, Specialized Health Products

SURGICAL SCALPELS
Secondary prevention

• Quick-release scalpel blade handles: Bard-Parker SafetyLock Surgical Blade System, Becton Dickinson

• Retracting scalpel: Bard-Parker SafetyLock Disposable Scalpel, Becton Dickinson; DIAMATRIX Surgical Steel E-Series Trapezoid blade, DIAMATRIX, LTD., INC.; DeRoyal Safety Scalpel with retractable blade, DeRoyal; Futura Safety Scalpel-retractable scalpel, Futura Medical Corp.; Personna Safety Scalpel - disposable, Personna Medical

• Ultrasonic scalpel: Harmonic Scalpel, Ethicon Endo-Surgery

BLUNTED SUTURE NEEDLES:
Secondary prevention

• Ethiguard Blunt Point, Ethicon, Inc.

• Other blunted suture needles available from Auto Suture Co./USSC; Kendall Healthcare Products Co.

OTHER SURGICAL SHARPS PROTECTION
Secondary prevention

• Magnatreve Magnetic Floor Sweep, Adept-Med International, Inc.; SutureMate, DeRoyal Industries; Hands Free Transfer disposable magnetic drapes, Devon Industries; Blade Guard II sharps counting and disposal system, Devon Industries; QlickSmart Scalpel Blade Removal System, Qlicksmart Pty. Ltd.

Cut- or puncture-resistant barrier products: Gimbel Medical Glove, GimbelGlove Company; Paraderm Glove Liners, ViaGARD Medical Products; The WhizardLiner Glove, Whizard Protective Wear; FingGUARD Protective Pads, Zimmer PatientCare Division.

For more information, call (858) 350-8623, email info@NAPPSI.orgor access www.NAPPSI.org.