What type of needle is required when drawing medication out of an ampule for safety with avoiding glass fragments in the solution?

Updated by: Linda J. Vorvick, MD, Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Family Medicine, UW Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

Skill 50

Ampules contain single doses of injectable medication in a liquid form. An ampule is made of glass with a constricted, prescored neck that is snapped off to allow access to the medication. A colored ring around the neck indicates where the ampule is prescored. Medication is easily withdrawn from the ampule by aspirating with a filter needle and syringe. Filter needles must be used when preparing medication from a glass ampule to prevent glass particles from being drawn into the syringe (Alexander et al., 2009; Nicholl and Hesby, 2002).

A vial is a single- or multi-dose plastic or glass container with a rubber seal at the top. Vials may contain liquid or dry forms of medications. Some vials have two chambers separated by a rubber stopper. One chamber contains the diluent solution; the other contains the dry medication. Before preparing the medication, push on the upper chamber to dislodge the rubber stopper and allow the powder and the diluent to mix. Unlike an ampule, a vial is a closed system. You must inject air into the vial to permit easy withdrawal of the solution.

The skill of preparing injections from ampules and vials cannot be delegated to nursing assistive personnel (NAP).

Learn how to withdraw medication from a glass ampule!

As a nurse you will encounter some medications that are supplied in a glass ampule, and you will need to know how to break open the glass ampule and withdraw the medication from it.

Also check out how to withdraw medication from a vial.

Demonstration on How to Remove Medication from an Ampule

After confirming you have the:

right medication
right dose
at the right time
via the right route for…
the right patient.

Gather your supplies and perform hand hygiene. You will need the following:

A syringe to withdraw the medication with a non-filtered needle or needleless device to administer the medication.
A filter straw or needle to help filter out any small glass pieces that may have entered the solution so you won’t inject them in the patient when you administer the medication.
- Filter straws come in various lengths (example: 4” to 1 ¾), so pick the correct size based on the size of the ampule.
Gauze to help you break the ampule.
Alcohol prep to help you clean the outside of the ampule before breaking it.
Ampule of medication

Inspect the ampule for any damage, discoloring of solution, or particles in the solution.
Make sure the liquid in the ampule is all collected in the body of the ampule rather than the head and neck.
1. To do this: lightly tap on the head of the ampule and it will drip down into the body of the ampule.
Clean the neck of the ampule with alcohol prep and let it dry.
Connect the syringe to the filter straw (leave it in the protective packaging until you’re ready to use it) and leave the syringe’s needle in the protective packaging until ready to use as well.
Take the gauze and wrap it around the head and neck of the ampule.
Sit the ampule on a flat sturdy surface and pull on the head of the ampule in a snapping motion to break off the head of the ampule at it’s neck…most ampules have a scored neck so they are easy to break off.
1. NOTE: Pull the head off so the broken parts of the ampule are AWAY from your body/hand when it breaks. This will help prevent injury to yourself.
Discard the head of the ampule into the sharps box (or however your facility requires).
To withdraw the medication from the ampule:
1. Place the ampule on a flat sturdy surface.
2. Insert the filter straw into the ampule (don’t touch the edges of where the ampule is broken because it’s contaminated). Also, do NOT inject air into the ampule…this is only applicable to vials.
3. Withdraw the amount of medication ordered. You will want to withdraw a little bit more than ordered because you will have to remove the extra air out of the syringe, and then you can squirt out the excess.
4. Remove the filter straw from the ampule and turn the syringe upward and remove any air bubbles by flicking the syringe and using the plunger to push out the air bubbles.
5. Remove and discard the filter straw and ampule in the sharps container (or as your facility requires).
6. Attach the syringe’s original needle device and keep it in the protective covering until ready to use.