nee·dle 1. a sharp instrument for suturing or puncturing. 2. to puncture with a needle, as in discission of the lens for treatment of cataract. Abrams needle, a biopsy needle designed to reduce the danger of introducing air into tissues, as in pleural biopsy. aneurysm needle, one with a handle, used in ligating blood vessels. aspirating needle, a long, hollow needle for removing fluid from a cavity. atraumatic needle, an eyeless surgical needle with the suture attached to a hollow end. Brockenbrough needle, a curved steel transseptal needle within a Brockenbrough transseptal catheter; used to puncture the interatrial septum. butterfly needle, a phlebotomy needle with tabs like the wings of a butterfly that provide a firm anchor for taping. cataract needle, one used in removing a cataract. Chiba needle, fine n. Cope needle, a blunt-ended hooklike needle with a concealed cutting edge and snare, used in biopsy of the pleura, pericardium, peritoneum, and synovium. Deschamps needle, one with the eye near the point, and a long handle attached; used in ligating deep-seated arteries. discission needle, a special form of cataract needle. fine needle, a very thin, highly flexible steel needle with a narrow inner core used to cannulate very small bile ducts to perform percutaneous (or fine needle) transhepatic cholangiography (see under cholangiography). Called also Chiba n. and skinny n. Hagedorn needles, surgical needles that are flat from side to side, with a straight cutting edge near the point and a large eye. hypodermic needle, a short, slender, hollow needle used in injecting drugs beneath the skin. knife needle, a slender knife with a needlelike point, used in discission of a cataract and other ophthalmic operations, as in goniotomy and goniopuncture. ligature needle, a slender steel needle with a long handle and an eye in its curved end, used for passing a ligature underneath an artery. Menghini needle, a needle that does not require rotation to cut loose the tissue specimen in a biopsy of the liver. Reverdin needle, a surgical needle having an eye which can be opened and closed by means of a slide. scalp vein needle, a short rigid needle with flexible wings on each side; used to infuse IV fluids for short periods of time, in patients with small veins or in children. Seldinger needle, a needle with a blunt, tapered external cannula with a sharp obturator; used for the initial percutaneous insertion characteristic of the Seldinger technique for arterial or venous access. Silverman needle, an instrument for taking tissue specimens, consisting of an outer cannula, an obturator, and an inner split needle with longitudinal grooves in which the tissue is retained when the needle and cannula are withdrawn. skinny needle, fine n. spatula needle, a minute needle with a flat or slightly curved concave surface that does not cut or pierce, used in ophthalmic surgery. stop needle, a needle with a shoulder that prevents it from being inserted beyond a certain distance. swaged needle, one permanently attached to the suture material. transseptal needle, a needle used to puncture the interatrial septum in transseptal catheterization. Tuohy needle, one in which the opening at the end is angled 45 degrees so that a catheter or endoscope through its lumen exits at an angle; used for examination or treatment of the epidural space or subarachnoid space. Veress needle, a hollow needle consisting of a sharp trocar with a slanted end surrounding an inner cylinder with a blunt end; after the trocar is introduced into a body cavity the blunt cylinder is advanced outward so that internal organs are not injured by the sharp edge; used for insufflation of a body cavity, such as for pneumoperitoneum in minimally invasive surgery. Vim-Silverman needle, a needle used in needle biopsy.