I am scheduled to give myself my HCG shot, I know it is an IM needle, can I use a 25 gauge or does it have to be a 22 gauge? The pharmacy gave me a bunch of needles without saying which needle goes with which med. Thanks!

Hi, I'm not sure about the needle numbers, but I've always had to use the big one for adding the saline to the ampule/s, then swap to the finer one for injecting. If possible use the smallest needle you have to actually inject with. Hope this helps, and good luck!
Lizzie

Thanks Lizzie, it's all coming back now. It's been two years since our last IVF and I am a little rusty. I appreciate your help!

Diane

:)Hi Diane- the HCG shot has to be an intramuscular injection so the needle size (length) depends where you're going to inject. If the area has fat then the length should be at least 1.5 inches long so that the med goes into the muscle and not the fat. If it's in an area where there isn't much fat (like the deltoids) then the 25 gauge (or 1 inch) needle should be ok. The gauge is just the thickness of the needle. I got the HCG shot last night and DH used the big 2 inch 21 gauge needle (the smaller gauge number the thicker the needle will be) in my back upper hip. Be aware that wherever you inject the next couple days may be a bit sore.

Injections in the muscle metabolize faster than in the fat, plus some meds may be irritating to fatty tissue vs. muscle. FYI.

HTH