Types of Huber Needles

Often the outer palms of chronically ill patients have a port implanted. This enables the medical staff to administer a continuous flow of medication. It also eliminates the need to prick a patient multiple times to deliver medication. A Huber needle gives access to the port and remains embedded in the port for the duration of the treatment. Various types allow for smooth extraction with minimal injury to the nurses or doctors.

Huber Safety Needles

• Huber safety needles are of various kinds. They come with wings that only require holding the sides while withdrawing the needle. This protects the user from needle recoil as well as accidental jabs. Once withdrawn, the needle lies within the wings. It functions so that the user hears a sound when pulling it out.

  Some of the companies that have manufactured Huber safety needles are Now Medical, Horizon Medical Products, Luther, Lifeguard and B. Braun.

  Medical personnel use Huber needles for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy as well in patients requiring a high level of antibiotics or TPN.

Gripper Needles

• The Gripper needle design facilitates the removal of the Huber needle in one swift movement. The device has an extended arm that first locks the needle away safely. This then allows the user to remove the needle without risking injury. Some variations include a padded cushion for the patient as well as color-coding for the clamps to indicate their use for different needle gauges.

  Gripper Plus is a brand available from Deltec as well as Smith’s.

Other Huber Needles

• Huber needles also come as safety infusion sets. These have shields keeping the user unhurt during recoil. They also come with a patient pad to ease the discomfort to the patient. In this case, the wings lift instead of depress as do safety needles. Some of the manufacturers of these are LiftLoc, which is trademarked, plus the HuberLoc from MedCare Medical Group, EZ Huber from Navilyst Medical, PowerLoc and HuberPlus from Bard + SHPI.