Needles etcetera

Here are some of the ideas to share and myths to dispel about some of the types of commonly used sharps for body piercing.

Association of Professional Piercers members have the freedom to choose the types of sterilized sharps to make the openings in which they will place sterilized jewelry, where available and allowed by regulations. (Within reason and upholding client expectations for fitness for the purpose, risk, and propriety.)

There are several options:

• needles (needle blade) and catheter (IV cannula) with various bevel geometries,
• and less widely used sharps such as O-needles, chamfer needles, and other circular cutting devices (biopsy punch),
• or blades (scalpel).

If you are more curious about ways professionals might use and reasons they might choose needles, catheters or other sharps, you can attend one of my classes.

Piercing Needles and Cannula (Catheters, Introcan, etc):

• Like with internal and external threaded jewelry, there are good piercings needles and bad, good cannula and bad.
• Most differences noticed by professionals between the sharps available for piercing are subjective.
• There are objective differences:
  • The functional limit of sharpness is a razor edge
  • The quality of the metal can determine this, how well it will hold the sharp edge due to hardness and corrosion resistance
  • Anti-coring heel treatment to avoid tissue removal
  • The quality of the surface smoothness to minimize extraction force
  • The quality of cleaning and passivation
  • The quality of the lubricant coating
  • The quality of the sterilization, in house or from manufacturer

Needle vs. Cannula: Decoding the Objective Differences in Sharps for Body Piercing

The choice of sharp implement is fundamental to a professional piercing procedure. While many aspects that influence a piercer’s preference between a piercing needle (often a needle blade) and a catheter/cannula needle might seem subjective, a range of measurable, objective differences exist related to manufacturing quality, geometry, and material science that influence performance and healing.

Professional observations suggest that the quality of the piercing outcome hinges less on the device category itself and more on the piercer’s technique and the specific quality characteristics of the needle used.

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I. Objective Factors Defining Sharp Piercing Instrument Quality

The functional performance of any sharp instrument, whether a piercing needle or a cannula, can be assessed based on several objective characteristics that influence tissue interaction:

A. Core Sharpness and Metal Quality

1. Functional Sharpness: The theoretical limit of functional sharpness is defined by a razor edge. A needle works as a simple machine composed of a wedge (the point configuration) and a handle (the body). The bevel acts as the working part, separating tissue along its razor edge.
2. Metal Integrity: The quality of the metal determines how effectively the sharp edge will be maintained due to factors like hardness and corrosion resistance. Hypodermic needles are typically made of stainless steel alloys, such as AISI 316 or 304. Stainless steel 304 is noted for being rust-proof and having high heat resistance.

B. Surface Finish and Lubrication

To minimize resistance and trauma during penetration, the needle’s surface must be optimized:

• Surface Smoothness (Minimizing Drag): The quality of surface smoothness is critical to minimize the force required during extraction. Most surgical needles are coated to facilitate passage through tissue, and comparative measurements are often done to assess the lubricity and durability of these coatings. Surfaces can be optimized through processes like electro-polishing, which results in smoother, cleaner surfaces, reducing the coefficient of friction.
• Lubricant Coating: Quality sharps utilize a lubricant coating to reduce penetration force. For example, the use of a low friction lubricant can significantly improve the ease of penetration. Studies show that lubricated needles can require 1.5 to 3 times less force compared to dry needles. Coatings can include silicone oil or polymers like PDA/PTFE, which can reduce tip penetration force substantially.

C. Manufacturing and Sterilization Integrity

1. Anti-Coring Treatment: Sharp instruments should incorporate design features like anti-coring heel treatment to prevent the removal of a small plug of tissue, often called “coring”.
2. Cleaning and Passivation: The needle must undergo meticulous cleaning and passivation steps during manufacturing to ensure biological safety and optimal condition. For instance, certain metal piercing implements like needle blanks are deburred and passivated during production.
3. Sterilization Quality: The standard of sterilization is vital, regardless of whether it is conducted in-house or provided by the manufacturer.
   •  Manufacturer Sterilization: Cannula needles often come pre-sterilized (hospital-grade) via gamma-radiation, which is considered a preferred method for single-use medical items and eliminates the need for spore testing. Needles can also be sterilized by Ethylene Oxide (E.O.) gas if ordered sterile.
   • In-House Sterilization: For items purchased from body art suppliers, all equipment, including needles and tools, must be sterilized in the studio using an autoclave that is regularly spore-tested, unless the supplier certifies they meet stringent medical-grade standards (CGMP).

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II. Geometrical and Procedural Differences

While the objective manufacturing factors listed above apply to both types of sharps, their fundamental geometrical differences create distinct operational characteristics in piercing. Some are more or less subjective.

Feature	Piercing Needle (Needle Blade)	Cannula/Catheter Needle
Bevel Design & Function	Designed with a more tapered angle at the Lancet tip (often an “A” bevel). The goal is to maximize the acute angle for less tissue “splash”.	Often features a short bevel shape (K bevel or Back ground bevel). Typically designed for IV usage.
Tissue Interaction	Designed to minimize trauma and avoid the deep C-shaped cut common in standard hypodermic needles. Correct technique aims for an elliptical or () shaped wound.	The geometry results in a more abrupt edge and typically leads to “more cut” and “abrupt elevation”. They tend to cut off center by design.
Drawbacks	Often results in a harder jewelry transfer compared to cannulas, increasing the potential for transfer failure.	They can have a weak tube wall and tips bend easily. It is difficult to manipulate tissue with a catheter without the heel of the needle starting to grab or core thicker tissue, causing increased drag.
Asepsis & Handling	Can be used with a tool handle for aseptic piercing.	May be better suited for an aseptic no-touch technique because they are often pre-sterilized and include a protective plastic sleeve.

Impact on Trauma

While geometric theory suggests the piercing needle should cause less trauma, a histological study comparing different methods found no significant difference in tissue damage:

• A study evaluating damage to ear cartilage in cadavers using an intravenous catheter (cannula method) versus other techniques (including hand pressure and spring-loaded piercing devices “guns”) found no significant difference in the amount of injury to the cartilage and perichondrium caused by the piercing needle (IV catheter). Source
• The pattern of injury was similar across all techniques tested, with most damage occurring at the exit site.
• The conclusion was that, based on direct tissue damage, all measured piercing methods were expected to carry the same risk for complications like perichondritis, suggesting that hygiene and aftercare are the most critical factors.

Managing Non-Centered Cuts

Hypodermic needles, by design, cut off center, which introduces drag and forces that require compensation. Piercers can control their technique to compensate by centering the cutting edge in line with the piercing rather than centering on the tube itself. This specialized method, when managed correctly, is intended to minimize trauma, reduce bleeding, and prevent the creation of skin flaps.

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Further discussion from an older APP statement on sharps:

Some of this material is debatable and subjective based on the training and experience of the piercer, and the quality of the device.

Piercing Needle (Needle Blade)

A quality piercing needle by Industrial Strength LLC (many other quality sharps for piercing exist)

Advantage:

• Less bleeding than when using cannula. (Subjectively, and dependant on the user)

Disadvantage:

• Harder to do jewelry transfers without a connection pin or tapered guide than cannula, possibility for a greater percentage of transfer failure. (Subjectively, and dependant on the user)

Cannula (Catheter)

Introcan cannula by Braun (many other quality sharps for piercing exist)

Advantage:

• Sharper than low quality piercing needles.
• Easier jewelry transfer.
• Pre-sterilized, hospital grade, gamma-radiation, more readily available than piercing needles.
• Gamma-radiation sterilization is the preferred method for sterilization of single-use items for many in the medical field. An advantage over autoclaving is that no spore test is needed.

Disadvantage:

• In extremely rare cases the plastic sleeve collapses.
• Sleeve can be rough if cut.
• Increased bleeding in some piercings, as compared to piercing needles because the sleeve is slightly larger than than the jewelry.
• Adds time to the piercing process waiting for the tissue to contract and for the bleeding to coagulate.
• To avoid bleeding some piercers have used smaller cannula size than the jewelry, this creates a tight fit in the sleeve making the jewelry transfer a slight stretch and less smooth.
• More expensive than piercing needles.

From the Association of Professional Piercers educational presentation materials