Syringe with Integrated Vein Finder

An in vivo, subcutaneous vein finding syringe system, comprising:

• a syringe including a barrel having a proximal open end and a distal end, a plunger “within the barrel, translatable within the proximal open end of the barrel, and a needle projecting from the distal end of the barrel, the needle having a pointed tip for piercing a subcutaneous vein of a patient;
• an illumination module having:
• an enclosure, an illumination source oriented in the enclosure that projects an electromagnetic beam out of the enclosure into an illumination zone distal the pointed tip, for illuminating and identifying a subcutaneous vein of the patient to be pierced by the needle;
• and
• a selectively detachable mount for coupling the illumination module to the syringe barrel.

A method for finding an in vivo, subcutaneous vein of a patient and for piercing same with a syringe needle, comprising:

• providing a syringe including a barrel having a proximal open end and a distal end, a plunger “within the barrel, translatable within the proximal open end of the barrel, and a needle projecting from the distal end of the barrel, the needle having a pointed tip, and an illumination module coupled to the syringe barrel, having an illumination source that projects an electromagnetic beam into an illumination zone distal the pointed tip;
• selectively orienting the illumination zone on a patient's body by moving the syringe;
• identifying a subcutaneous vein of the patient that is within the illumination zone;
• and
• puncturing the identified subcutaneous vein with the syringe needle while the subcutaneous vein remains within the illumination zone.