When asked what syringes are used for, many people will immediately think of medical injections such as flu shots. Besides the administration of medicine, syringes are used in many professional capacities such as injection tasks within research laboratories and candy creation.

Laboratory Use

Syringes are commonly used in laboratories for a wide variety of tasks. In addition to being used for precise measurements and liquid injection, some syringes are used for basic cleaning and transferring. In research laboratories, specialized equipment is typically used. One popular type of laboratory equipment is the Cavro pump that can come equipped with a variety of syringe types dependent on the model, such as a 1mL syringe that can be individually replaced. The Cavro syringe pumps can be used for chemistry analyzers, sample preparation and other exact tasks. Dependent on the application, syringes of different materials may be used to help increase chemical resistance, provide higher levels of precision or ensure avoidance of contamination.

Animal Care

Syringes can be used to feed animals of various species, especially sick or infant animals who may require careful handling and precise measurements of food or medicine. Syringes for this purpose can often be obtained from veterinarians, pet stores or pharmacies. The size of the syringe required is dependent upon the animal’s needs as dictated by the veterinarian. Caution must be exercised to avoid causing the animal to choke during feeding. Rabbits, for example, should be given small amounts at a time to avoid aspiration.

Culinary Use

Many culinary techniques involve the use of syringes to inject liquid, create candies and insert filling. Marinade injectors are used to inject meats with additional flavor. Others use syringes to help with molding chocolate.

There are many uses for syringes outside of the doctor’s office. For some tasks that require care and precision, syringes are often an excellent option for getting the job done right.