Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences

Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Clinical Skills Centre > Clinical Skills Resources

• Introduction
• Learning Outcomes
• Why administer by Injection?
• Intramuscular & Subcutaneous Routes?
• Anatomy of Injection Sites
  • Intramuscular Thigh
  • Intramuscular Buttock
  • Intramuscular Arm
  • Subcutaneous Sites
• Assessing Injection Sites
• Equipment
  • Syringe
  • Needles
  • Preparation
• Drawing up the Medication
• Intramuscular Injection Technique
• Subcutaneous Injection Technique
• Documentation and Record Keeping
• Quiz
• Credits & Further Reading

Intramuscular and Subcutaneous Injection Technique

Intramuscular Injections in the Buttocks

• Dorsogluteal muscle / Gluteus maximus - Max 4ml
• This route should be approached with great care due to the potential risk of damage to the Sciatic nerve and superior gluteal artery
• The approximate route of the Sciatic nerve is shown in pink - please note that this does vary. - needle size assessment as subcut fat varies greatly/individual (bone)
• Only use the area identified by the arrows within the red lines.
• Review a good anatomy book to identify underlying structures which need to be avoided.

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