Different needles serve different needs, even in vaccination - MOH

KUALA LUMPUR: Different needles may be used during an injection procedure, including the vaccination process, because they serve different needs, according to the Ministry of Health (MOH).

It said that when withdrawing fluid from the vial for COVID-19 vaccination, a bigger needle with blue colour is needed to ensure smooth extraction.

The needle colour signifies bore size, with the blue one used to aspirate liquid from the vial while the smaller bore size needle (red or orange) is used for inoculation to ensure less pain and bruise, it said in a statement today.

MOH stressed that different needles were also required to prevent cross-contamination between patients.

"Importantly, the vaccine drawn from the vial and given to the patient is unchanged," it added.

Yesterday, after watching television coverage of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin receiving his first Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine shot, some parties on social media alleged that the prime minister might have been given another type of liquid as the colour of the needles changed from blue to orange during the vaccination process.

-- BERNAMA