I just noticed our new lot of 23g butterflies has really stiff tubing - this morning in peds it tugged every time I swapped tubes and my little guy squirmed, which made the holder feel like it was twisting out of my hand. Is this a bad batch or a brand quirk, and does anyone have a softer set or a holder that cuts down the torque?
Feels like wrestling a tiny garden hose . We had the same with a recent BD lot and switched to Greiner Vacuette butterflies, plus a short Luer extension/rotating adapter between the set and holder to soak up the torque. If you can, trial a strip from both brands and keep a low‑vac holder for peds to cut the tug.
Saw this with a BD 23g lot too — adding a 4–6 in microbore extension with a rotating Luer between the wing and holder kills the tug, and Greiner Vacuette butterflies have felt softer for us. @creed want me to drop the SKUs we use?
I make a tiny U‑loop of the butterfly line and anchor it with paper tape right after I seat the needle — acts like a strain relief so swapping tubes doesn’t twist the hub on wiggly kids; have you tried adding a little slack before the first tube?
. We had the same with a recent BD lot and switched to Greiner Vacuette butterflies, plus a short Luer extension/rotating adapter between the set and holder to soak up the torque. If you can, trial a strip from both brands and keep a low‑vac holder for peds to cut the tug.