Abstract: A needle assembly is disclosed which comprises a hub (12) to which a needle (20) is fixed. A spring (30) is coupled to the hub (12) and surrounds the needle (20). The free end of the spring (30) retains an end cap (32) which is intended to cover the tip of the needle (20) after use of the needle assembly. A clamp (34) may be used to maintain the spring (30) compressed so that the needle assembly can be used and after use the clamp (34) is removed so that the needle biases the end cap (32) into a position where it covers the end of the needle (20). Alternatively, a deformable cylinder (80) may be coupled with the hub (12) and have clip members (82) which engage corresponding clip recess (84) on the end cap (32) to maintain the spring (30) compressed. Upon deformation of the deformable member (80) the end cap (32) is released from the deformable member (80) so that the spring (30) biases the end cap (32) into a position encapsulating the end of the needle.