This study has the purpose to identify methodological approaches used in research articles published in the last 16 years by periodicals indexed to the Lilacs and Medline databases. The authors searched for studies on occupational accidents with needlestick materials in order to identify the facts that predispose this kind of accidents among nursing workers. Fifty-five articles were analyzed of which thirty-nine were international and sixteen were national. The most frequently used methodological approaches were field description, action research and bibliographic research. Among the factors that predispose this kind of accident in various countries, the inadequate practice of recapping needles and inadequate material disposal can be distinguished.