Routes of Administration
- ENTERAL
- Oral
- Sublingual
- Rectal
- PARENTERALS
- Intravenous
- Intramuscular
- Subcutaneous
- INHALATION
- TRANSCUTANEOUS
The subcutaneous route requires that the drug is administered, through a syringe, into the subcutaneous tissue. In any case, it is very difficult to establish the exact point in which to carry out the administration, because it depends on the inclination of the needle and on the personnel carrying out the operation.
With the subcutaneous route it is possible to reach local effects (for example a local anesthetic) or systemic (for example a drug that acts at a systemic level, such as insulin). In the subcutaneous route, compared to the intramuscular route, the injection volume (at the max 2 ml.) is clearly lower, the absorption much slower and the pain more intense, since the skin tissue has many more nociceptive endings than the muscle. The speed of absorption depends on the degree of spraying of the area, so it must be remembered that if a localized effect is to be obtained, the drug will be associated with a vasoconstrictor. If, on the other hand, you want to increase the contact area, the medicine will be associated with the hyaluronidase enzyme, which thanks to its activity reduces the consistency of collagen.
- the outer upper part of the arms
- the periumbilical area of the abdomen
- the front of the thighs
The skin should be lifted to avoid injecting the drug into the muscle and the needle should be inserted at a 90 ° angle to the skin surface; the rotation of the injection sites is important.
BENEFITS:
- the absorption of aqueous solutions is rapid;
- absorption can be slowed down by adding a vasoconstrictor;
- it is a suitable way for the planting of tablets or pellets;
- little training is needed to perform this type of administration;
- route suitable for frequent administration.
DISADVANTAGES:
- irritating drugs can provoke pain and necrosis;
- does not allow the administration of large volumes;
- a certain variability of absorption is possible.
Subcutaneous implants
With regard to subcutaneous administration, the possibility of performing small subcutaneous implants must also be mentioned. The implant consists in lifting the upper part of the skin and inserting a solid pharmaceutical form containing a certain active ingredient. In this way the molecule will dissolve much more slowly, giving a delayed effect over time. Thanks to these implants, for example, steroid hormones can be administered (a method used in women entering menopause) or insulin in crystallized form, which can be inserted subcutaneously avoiding injection.
Other articles on "Subcutaneous route of administration"
- Route of intramuscular administration
- Intravenous route of administration
