NeedleSmart Gets FDA Clearance for Its Safe Needle Destruction Technology

The FDA has granted NeedleSmart 510(k) clearance for a device designed to protect healthcare workers and patients from needlestick injuries.

The NeedleSmart Pro device destroys a contaminated hypodermic needle in a sealed chamber in six seconds. It heats the needle to 2,372 degrees Fahrenheit, killing potentially harmful pathogens, viruses and bacteria adhering to the needle. It compresses the used needle into a tiny ball and releases it as a safe sphere of metal at the tip of the syringe.

More than a million needle stick injuries are reported in the U.S. each year by frontline nurses, healthcare workers and patients. And because of underreporting, the actual number of injuries could be up to five times higher, the UK-based company said.