What angle should the needle be placed when administering an intramuscular injection?

When administering an intramuscular injection, the needle should be placed at a 90-degree angle to ensure that the medication is delivered deep into the muscle tissue. This angle allows for effective penetration through the skin and subcutaneous tissue into the muscle, facilitating appropriate absorption of the medication. The muscle is a vascular area, which means that delivering the medication intramuscularly can provide a quicker onset of action compared to other routes, such as subcutaneous injection.

The other angles listed do not allow for the same level of penetration into muscle. For instance, a 45-degree or 30-degree angle would be more suitable for subcutaneous injections where medication is administered into the fatty tissue just beneath the skin, not deep into the muscle. A 60-degree angle is also too shallow for intramuscular injections and would likely result in superficial tissue penetration, which could affect the efficacy of the medication received.