By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Prefilled Syringes: A Ready Answer to Saving Billions of Dollars and Mitigating Medical Errors
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Global Healthcare > Prefilled Syringes: A Ready Answer to Saving Billions of Dollars and Mitigating Medical Errors
Global HealthcareMedical DevicesMedical Innovations

Prefilled Syringes: A Ready Answer to Saving Billions of Dollars and Mitigating Medical Errors

Varsha Jain
Varsha Jain
Share
7 Min Read
prefilled syringe
SHARE

prefilled syringeWithin the $70 billion plus global market for injectable drugs, one specialty segment – the prefilled syringe – has garnered noteworthy popularity since the 1980s. Prefilled syringes were introduced during World War II, but it wasn’t until the early 1980s that this injectable drug delivery method started gaining larger exposure.

prefilled syringeWithin the $70 billion plus global market for injectable drugs, one specialty segment – the prefilled syringe – has garnered noteworthy popularity since the 1980s. Prefilled syringes were introduced during World War II, but it wasn’t until the early 1980s that this injectable drug delivery method started gaining larger exposure. The turning point came when Sanofi and Rhône Poulenc-Rorer launched heparins in the form of prefilled syringes.

Prior to this, prefilled syringes were viewed mostly as an insignificant niche within the larger market for injectable drugs. The therapeutic scope of prefilled syringes was limited to a smaller range of applications in a few vaccines and anticoagulant products. The demand for prefilled syringes exploded in the following years, and they soon became the container of choice in major therapeutic classes for injectable drug formulations. The major factors that resulted in a breakthrough progress of this technology were the clear advantages presented by prefilled syringes over traditional ampoules and vials.

Today, these foundational aspects continue to drive the prefilled syringes market. But given that prefilled syringes have also seamlessly adapted to contemporary medical demands, their popularity doesn’t come as a surprise.

More Read

Were the Beatles Wrong About “When I Am Sixty-Four”?
Lucky Us! How New Medicines Are Cheating Death
Really Oxfam? Really?
How the iPad is Increasing Accuracy and Simplifying the Life of Physicians
NxThera – Vapor Ablation Therapy for BPH

Why It’s Hard to Ignore the Advantages of Prefilled Syringes

Drug administration via the traditional ampoule and vial method requires adhering to a number of steps such as: reading the required dose prescribed by the physician from a prescription, withdrawing slightly more formulation from the vial than prescribed, inverting the syringe to allow any air bubbles to ascend to the top, depressing the plunger slightly to expel any air, and finally, depressing the plunger slightly further to make the dosage in proportion prescribed by the physician.

These steps can be arduous, not to mention error-prone.

In contrast, drugs filled in prefilled syringes can be administered merely by removing packaging of the syringe and injecting the formulation. Their single-use, disposable format, combined with the fact that fixed doses of drugs are filled in them mechanically and again cross-checked electronically during quality check, makes their use easy and error-free. Prefilled syringes also reduce the risks of needle-stick injury, which is more likely with traditional formats because they keep the needle tip exposed longer.

Another cost-efficient feature of prefilled syringes is the precise amount of drug contained by them. Vials and ampoules have to be filled with more liquid than what is prescribed to be injected so that the correct amount is withdrawn. The excess formulation that gets wasted can be a costly matter, especially when expensive biotech products are considered.

Opportunity Alert: Prefilled Syringes in the Critical Care Emergency Drugs Market

Combined with the enormous benefits presented by prefilled syringes, it was the emergence of biotechnology drugs during the early 90s that led this market to robust expansion. The market has since continued to grow at a good pace. Analysts suggest that nearly 3 billion prefilled syringes were sold in 2013. Potential growth opportunities in the market suggest that this market could easily notch a demand for nearly 7 billion units by 2019.

A lot has been said and written about prefilled syringes over the past decade and a range of new developments have been brought to the market by leading manufacturers. But there is one truly important point that remains unaddressed, by both the consumers and the people administering these drugs: the rare existence of prefilled syringes in the critical care emergency drugs market.

The critical care emergency drugs market, not surprisingly, is the area where benefits provided by prefilled syringes could be best exploited to enhance patient care and ensure safety. Drugs used in critical care centers and at emergency situations are such that they can save a life, or may claim one, for instance atropine and ephedrine.

The fact remains that a major portion of drugs from this therapeutic class is still prepared and dosed in syringes by critical care nurses around the globe. Syringes filled with such critical care drugs are prepared every day to treat patients and some are filled only on account of an emergency anesthesia or planned surgery.

Surveys say that nearly 70% of syringes of atropine dosage prepared for emergency situations are ultimately wasted because of the lack of a necessity during the operating procedure, and lack of evidence of stability and sterility for later use. The demand for atropine (and other critical therapeutic drugs) is huge – millions of atropine glass ampoules are sold every year throughout the world. Wastage of at least 70% of them must be a substantial loss of funds to everybody involved in the chain of treatment. Let’s not forget that risks of glass cuts with these products for the medical staff are also huge.

In light of these substantial numbers, there is a pressing need for more prefilled technology in every therapeutic area. Quality-controlled, precisely-filled and large-scale industrially manufactured drugs in prefilled syringes would contribute significantly toward eradicating medical errors, risks of nosocomial infections, and reduce wastage of drugs and supplies at large.

Chiefly, they will allow medical staff to save valuable time and attend to patients more effectively – a factor that can make or break equations as important as someone’s life in operation theatres.

prefilled syringe / shutterstock

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

dental care
Importance of Good Dental Care for Health and Confidence
Dental health Specialties
October 2, 2025
AI in Healthcare
AI in Healthcare: Technology is Transforming the Global Landscape
Global Healthcare Policy & Law Technology
October 1, 2025
Choosing the Right Swimwear for Health and Safety
News
September 30, 2025
sports concussions
Concussion In Sports: How Common They Are And What You Need To Know
Infographics
September 28, 2025

You Might also Like

toilet of the future
DiagnosticsHome HealthMedical InnovationsTechnologyWellness

Toilet of the Future Winner Combines Ergonomics with Screening System That Tests for Disease, Pregnancy

December 23, 2013

Scanadu’s Tricorder Has Raked in $100K on Indiegogo

May 30, 2013
hair translplants
Medical InnovationsTechnology

ARTAS Hair Transplant Robot Gets FDA Clearance

April 26, 2011

What Can We Learn from the UK Health System?

January 22, 2015
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?