Insulin Syringes (1ml 30G)

B.Braun Omnican — 1ml / 100-unit, fixed 30G needle (12 mm), 0.5 µl dead volume

A B.Braun Omnican 1ml (100-unit) insulin syringe with a fixed 30-gauge needle. Thin-walled, with a stated dead volume of 0.5 microlitres and a transparent barrel graduated every 2 units. Sterile, single-use, individually blister packed, manufactured to EN ISO 8537. Sold singly, in tens and in hundreds.

Areas of research

• 1ml / 100-unit barrel, 2-unit graduations
• Fixed 30G needle (12 mm), thin-walled
• Dead volume 0.5 microlitres
• Latex, PVC, DEHP and BPA free
• Sterile, single-use, individually blister packed

Identity and specification

30G or 29G?

We stock both, at the same 12 mm length. Neither is better; they trade against each other.

The short version: the 29G draws faster and costs less, the 30G wastes less and is easier to read. If what is in the vial is expensive per millilitre, the 0.5 µl dead volume is the argument. If you are drawing something viscous or straight out of the fridge, the wider lumen is.

Reading a 1 ml insulin syringe

An insulin syringe is graduated in units rather than millilitres, and that is where most measuring errors in a lab start. On a standard U-100 syringe, 100 units occupy 1 ml, so one unit is 0.01 ml and the numbered marks are ten units apart. The barrel does not care what is in it: the scale measures volume, not quantity of peptide. Converting between the two is arithmetic the operator does, from the mass stated on the vial and the volume of solvent actually added.

That last phrase matters. The volume added is the volume measured into the vial, not the volume printed on the ampoule of solvent, and the two differ if any is left behind. Recording the real figure at reconstitution is what makes every later withdrawal from that vial meaningful.

Gauge, length and fixed needles

Gauge describes the outside diameter on an inverted scale — 30G is finer than 29G, and the number climbs as the needle thins. Length is stated separately in millimetres. A fixed-needle syringe has the needle bonded permanently to the barrel, which removes the dead space of a detachable hub: less solution is stranded in the fitting and lost when the syringe is discarded. These are low-dead-space units specifically, so the volume left behind after the plunger bottoms out is smaller again — which matters most when what is in the barrel cost more per millilitre than the syringe did. The trade-off is that the needle cannot be changed independently, so a blunted or blocked needle means a new syringe.

Finer needles pass viscous solutions more slowly. Material reconstituted at high concentration, or drawn straight from refrigeration, will resist the plunger noticeably. Letting a vial return to room temperature first does more for a stiff draw than force does, and force is how barrels crack.

Drawing accurately

• Draw a little past the target mark, then expel back to it — approaching from above leaves air behind
• Tap the barrel with the needle upward so bubbles rise to the hub before expelling them
• Read the graduation at eye level; reading at an angle is worth several units of parallax error
• Swab the vial stopper with a 70% isopropyl pad and let it dry before each entry
• One syringe, one withdrawal — then straight into a sharps container

Why they are single-use

The needle point is ground and coated for one pass. After a single entry through a rubber stopper the bevel is measurably deformed under magnification, which makes the next entry harder and shears small fragments from the septum into the vial. Silicone lubricant on the plunger also depletes, so a reused syringe both drags and measures less repeatably. Reuse costs accuracy long before it becomes a contamination question, and it is a contamination question too.

Handling and storage

Keep syringes sealed in their blisters, dry, at room temperature and out of direct light until the moment of use; the sterile barrier is the packaging, and a blister that has been opened, crushed or damp is no longer one. Do not autoclave or attempt to re-sterilise a disposable syringe — the plastic distorts and the lubricant migrates. Used units go into a rigid sharps container, which is disposed of through a licensed route, never through household waste.

Sizes and pricing

A batch-specific Certificate of Analysis is available on request. New to handling lyophilised material? See our reconstitution guide, storage guide and how to read a COA.