Method and apparatus for piercing the skin and delivery or collection of liquids

A kit of a disposable single use medical device and an actuator device, the single use medical device being for delivering liquid to skin before lancing and/or aspirating liquid after lancing, the single use medical device having:

• a lancet housing having attachment means for releasable attachment of the lancet housing to the actuator device;
• a lancet piston having a sharp tip suitable for pricking skin at a forward end and a gripping feature at a rearward end;
• the actuator device having an actuator member, the actuator member having:
• lancet piston engagement means comprising a set of normally sprung-open clutch jaws;
• activation means comprising a cylindrical housing moveable with respect to the clutch jaws so that on extension of the cylindrical housing with respect to the normally sprung-open jaws, the jaws are closed,
• wherein the lancet piston engagement means and the activation means are operable to cause releasable engagement between the lancet piston and the actuator member at a first axial position of said lancet piston such that the lancet piston remains fixed in said first axial position relative to the actuator device and the lancet housing until said jaws are closed, and wherein the lancet piston is moveable with respect to the lancet housing axially along an internal space of the lancet housing, the lancet piston slidably and sealingly fitting in at least one section of the bore of the lancet housing, the device having a before-use configuration in which the sharp tip of the lancet piston is held shielded by the lancet housing, the releasable engagement between the actuator member and the lancet piston being operable to allow movement of the lancet piston to expose the sharp tip forwardly from the lancet housing to prick the skin and to move the sharp tip of the lancet piston to an after-use configuration in which the sharp tip of the lancet piston is again held shielded by the lancet housing, there being a liquid-containing space in the bore forwardly of the lancet piston in either the before-use configuration or in the after-use configuration or both.