10 Facts About Intramuscular injection

Medication administered via intramuscular injection is not subject to the first-pass metabolism effect which affects oral medications.

An intramuscular injection is less invasive than an intravenous injection and generally takes less time, as the site of injection is much larger.

An intramuscular injection can be used to administer many types of medications, specific contraindications depend in large part on the medication being administered.

The most frequent complications of a deltoid Intramuscular injection include pain, redness, and inflammation around the Intramuscular injection site, which are almost always mild and last only a few days at most.

Dorsogluteal site of Intramuscular injection is associated with a higher risk of skin and tissue trauma, muscle fibrosis or contracture, hematoma, nerve palsy, paralysis, and infections such as abscesses and gangrene.

An intramuscular injection can be administered in multiple different muscles of the body.

Common sites for intramuscular injection include: deltoid, dorsogluteal, rectus femoris, vastus lateralis and ventrogluteal muscles.

The Intramuscular injection is performed in a quick, darting motion perpendicular to the skin, at an angle between 72 and 90 degrees.

Z-track method is a method of administrating an IM Intramuscular injection that prevents the medication being tracked through the subcutaneous tissue, sealing the medication in the muscle, and minimizing irritation from the medication.

Until the 2000s, aspiration after inserting the needle was recommended as a safety measure, to ensure the Intramuscular injection was being administered in a muscle and not inadvertently in a vein.