Technology and Engineering Atlas

How Things Are Built
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme
Invention

Hypodermic Needle

Biomedical Engineering

A hypodermic needle is a very thin, hollow tube with a sharp tip, used with a syringe to inject substances into the body or to withdraw fluids from it. The Irish physician Francis Rynd built the device in 1844 at the Meath Hospital in Dublin. The hypodermic needle allowed controlled, direct delivery of medicines that could not be taken orally or would otherwise be ineffective, fundamentally changing how physicians administer drugs such as opiates and, later, insulin, and enabling the rapid treatment of acute medical conditions.

Facts
Year
1844 1
Significance
The hypodermic needle ranks among the most important intravenous inventions in drug administration, enabling direct injection of substances such as insulin that cannot be taken orally and rapid treatment of conditions such as catastrophic blood loss and shock. 1
FAQs

Is the credit for inventing the hypodermic needle settled?

Francis Rynd is generally credited with the first successful injection in 1844, but the question of priority is disputed.

Not entirely. The Irish physician Francis Rynd is generally credited with the first successful injection in 1844, at the Meath Hospital in Dublin, and that is why he is named as the inventor. Wikipedia's account of the device, however, notes that some controversy surrounds the question of priority in hypodermic medication, so the 1844 date marks the best-attested first success rather than a point on which every account agrees.
Connections

In Field

Source Hypodermic needle (Wikipedia)Wikipedia contributors

Invented By

Source Wikipedia: Francis Rynd
Sources
1. Hypodermic needle (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia contributors, Wikimedia Foundation
  • Lead section
    As one of the most important intravenous inventions in the field of drug administration, it is one of a category of medical tools which pierce the skin, called sharps.
  • In Field: Biomedical Engineering, Categories
    Drug delivery devices
  • In Group: Surgical and Interventional Instruments, Introduction
    As one of the most important intravenous inventions in the field of drug administration, it is one of a category of medical tools which pierce the skin, called sharps.
View the Source
Wikipedia: Francis Rynd
Invented By: Francis Rynd, Lead
Quote, Invented By: Francis Rynd, Lead
July 1861) was an Irish medical doctor known for inventing the hypodermic needle used in syringes in 1844, which also
View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.