Did you know that the right place to prick diabetic patients fingers is on the sides? (Areas marked with dots, not with an x) - Prick the finger with the lancing device at the sides of the finger as there are less nerve ending here than at the tips or the âpadsâ. World Health Organisation recommends the middle or ring fingers to be used for blood glucose tests (second and third fingers). Try to avoid using the little finger due to the skin being thin.
I’m 18 and when I interned at the hostpitol where I live this year in the Health Science class I was in, I did soooo many blood sugars. Did you also know that you aren’t supposed to wipe the area after you prick the finger before taking the blood, with an alcohol wipe because they have sugar in them.
It is actually advisable not to prick the index finger. The thumb and index finger are the most vital parts of the hand in a human. So we do not want to any infection occurring in these two fingers that may cause amputation or anything else that may render the finger hance the hand useless. This may especially be so in a diabetic. The synovial sheaths of the tendons in the middle and ring finger do not continue along to the flexor retinaculum, hence any infection in and along the finger is localised.
Type One Diabetic person here, this is exactly what I was taught. It also might be worth noting that after a while, almost every other diabetic I’ve met stops using the alcohol wipes before pricking, and stops the bleeding via putting the finger in their mouth for a minute or two. Might not be the most sanitary practice, but it’s effective and convenient. I don’t know how this affects clinical testing, so I thought it was worth mentioning.
