A History of Hypodermic Tubing
The word "hypodermic" is derived from two words of Greek origin. "Hypo" meaning "under," and "derma," meaning "skin." Over the last 150 years the basic design of the hypodermic syringe has remained the same. Hypodermic syringes originally consisted of a cylinder and movable plunger. Initially a glass piston was incorporated within the cylinder to prevent leaks as well as reduce the possibility of infection. Plastics were used when they were developed as a way to reduce costs and increase safety. But the manual syringe has remained essentially the same.
The Egyptian surgeon Ammar ibn Ali al-Mawsili is known for using the first hypodermic syringe-type device in the 900s. He developed a very small glass tube to remove cataracts from patients' eyes using suction. Originally the syringe, and the hypodermic needle, was used to remove fluid from patients. By the 1830s, intravenous injection and infusion was being experimented with and was used to treat cholera (intravenous saline). In 1853. Dr. Alexander Woods, the Secretary of the Royal College of Physicians in Edinburgh, Scotland, was credited for the invention of the hypodermic syringe for medical purposes. He was also credited with administering the first subcutaneous injections for the relief of pain with a regular syringe. He then published a short paper in 1855 titled "A new method for treating neuralgia by the direct application of opiates to painful points" for The Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Review. This paper commented that this method was not limited only to administering opiates (pain medication).
By the late 1800s the syringe, and subsequently the hypodermic needle, had moved into other areas of medicine including dentistry. And now it is common. A recent EPA estimates that the USA diabetes population alone uses more than 1 billion needles every year. And there are more uses for hypodermic tubing being tested and incorporated every year.