Abstract
Background : Patients with multiple sclerosis perform self-injections of Interferon for prevention of disease relapse. They have a question about the needle length required for the intramuscular self-injection. Therefore, we developed a formula to calculate the subcutaneous tissue thickness of the rectus femoris site for the intramuscular self-injection. The formula is calculated using BMI or the measurement of the tricep skinfold thickness using an Adipometer.
Purpose : To clarify whether these formulas are useful as an assessment of the needle length required for intramuscular self-injections in multiple sclerosis patients.
Methods : Subjects were 18 female patients with multiple sclerosis. Subcutaneous tissue thickness was measured at the right and left rectus femoris site using ultrasonography.The triceps skinfold thickness was measured using an Adipometer. The sum was calculated from the formula using BMI and the measurement of the tricep skinfold thickness using an Adipometer. The correlation between the ultrasonography results of subcutaneous tissue thickness and the fomula’s results were analyzed.
Results and Discussion : Signif icant correlations were f ound between the ultrasonography results and the f omulas using BMI ( P<0.01) and Adipometer measurements ( P<0.05). This study suggested that the assessment formula is useful to calculate the needle length necessary for multiple sclerosis patients using BMI. The assessment formula using the measurement of the tricep skinfold thickness by Adipometer is useful for all patients except the obese.
