Author(s)

Tetsuya Tanioka¹, Kensaku Takase², Yuko Yasuhara¹, Yueren Zhao³, Chizuru Noda⁴, Saki Hisashige⁴, Rozzano Locsin¹

¹Department of Nursing Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Tokushima University Graduate School, Tokushima, Japan.
²Department of Rehabilitation, Tokushima Prefectural Central Hospital, Tokushima, Japan.
³Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fujita Health University, Toyoake, Japan.
⁴School of Health Sciences, Tokushima University, Tokushima, Japan.

Delivered by intramuscular (IM) injections, Long Acting Injections (LAI), offering comparatively long term medicinal effects from several weeks to several months, are gaining much attention. The aim of this article was to indicate a safe and effective IM injection technique based on evidenced data derived from ultrasonographic data. Accurate anatomical knowledge is necessary in order to administer IM injections. It is possible to gain an adequate understanding of injection site anatomical structures by using ultrasound diagnostic devices. In particular, ultrasonography offers real-time diagnostic data allowing for observation of injection site, subcutaneous tissues, fat layers, muscle membrane, muscles and bones. To deliver the drug accurately into the muscle is essential, to achieve maximum drug efficacy and prevent injection site reactions. Therefore, when administering IM injections to the buttocks area, a suitable injection needle between 23G 25 mm to 21G or 22G 38 mm must be chosen depending on physique and drug characteristics. Needles determined as safe and effective through ultrasonographic evidence are needed such as in the case of a deltoid injection site, in which a 23G 25 mm injection needle is used in the absence of notable obesity. Not only the needle type is essential, but also the IM procedure itself. It is important to stretch the skin, inserting the needle at 90 degree angle to ensure depth of needle insertion to the muscle. Until new con-firmed evidence becomes available, it is necessary to increase the understanding of injection site selection methods, needle insertion depth, needle angle, and established IM injection techniques. The application of ultrasound devices in the development of next-generation techniques for IM injection is promising. Importantly, these techniques provide critical information from a risk management perspective.

Intramuscular Injection, Long Acting Injectable, Injection Site Reaction, Ultrasound Diagnostic Device, Intramuscular Injection Technique

Tanioka, T. , Takase, K. , Yasuhara, Y. , Zhao, Y. , Noda, C. , Hisashige, S. and Locsin, R. (2018) Efficacy and Safety in Intramuscular Injection Techniques Using Ultrasonographic Data. Health, 10, 334-350. doi: 10.4236/health.2018.103027.