Importance

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Abstract

To provide a high degree of protection against the possibility of someone being accidentally punctured by a contaminated needle, the syringe of the present invention has directly connected thereto a protective housing, which can be pivoted to a position in alignment with the contaminated needle to envelop the same. As the housing is pivoted into the alignment position, locking mechanisms integral of the housing would fixedly retain the needle within the housing. The syringe of the present invention may be modified to include a housing containing an integral collapsible section and a sealer adapted to the distal portion of the housing such that, upon collapse of the collapsible section of the housing, the tip of the contaminated needle would penetrate into and be sealingly secured by the sealer. Another modification of the syringe of the present invention involves utilizing a collapsible hinge to connect the protective housing to the main body portion of the syringe. Upon collapse of the collapsible hinge, the longitudinal distance separating the housing from the main body of the syringe is reduced, thereby causing the tip of the contaminated needle to pierce and penetrate into the sealer and be sealingly retained thereby.

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First Claim