Authors
Konstantinos Devetzis, Jennifer C E Lane, Ella Darveniza, Sara Sousi, Grey Giddins, Maxim D Horwitz, Hand Injury Prevention Collaborativeg, Will Mason, Alexander Curtis, Binta Jalloh, Rajesh Gopireddy, Nitin Sawant, Kudamaduwage Gomes, Jemma Rooker, Langhit Kurar, Juliana Hughes, Sayhow Teoh, Ryan Trickett, Rhodri Gwyn, Kath Hamlin, Michael David, Haneen Abed, Zaf Naqui, Christiana Lipede, Mo Akhavani, Francis Banhidy, Catrin Wigley, P Caine, Sheeva Rabie, Gursharan Khera, Jamil Moledina, Amir Labib, Alice Gargan, Maximillian Greenfield, Alistair Hunter, John Hardman, Meg Birks, Matt Weston, Dominic Power, Abdus Burahee, Adrian Murphy, Helen Wohlgemut, Simon Wimsey, George Matheron, Joshua Ong, Robert Poulter, Segun Ayeko, Sami Hassan, Khaled M Yaghmour, David Warwick, Sherif Fetouh, Onur Berber, Rory Cuthbert, George Wheble, Emily West, Edmund Wright, Lisa Leonard, Emma Reay, Rebecca Martin, David Clarke, Sian Sokota, Ahmed Zaghloul
Published in
JPRAS open. Volume 52. Pages 582-591. Epub Sep 28, 2026.
Abstract
Hand injuries are a frequent cause of morbidity, with patterns influenced heavily by societal behaviour. This audit investigated hand injuries in the UK occurring after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted (early 2022) and compared them with data from the COVID-19 lockdown period (early 2021).
A multicentre cross-sectional study was conducted across 23 hospitals, with clinicians prospectively recording consecutive hand injuries over a 2-week period (February-March 2022). Eligible cases included referrals to Orthopaedic, Plastic, or Hand surgery services. Data were submitted using a standardised online proforma, and preventability was classified using predefined criteria.
2,309 injuries were recorded from 23 hospitals - a 21% rise. Males made up 60% of cases. Median age was 34, similar to the lockdown period of 40. Sports-related injuries increased (10.2% to 22.7%), while DIY-related injuries declined (8% to 4%). Phalangeal and metacarpal fractures were the most common injuries. Alcohol and drug-related injuries rose from 2.4% to 4.5%. Overall, preventable injuries decreased from 50% to 35%, with only 19% of injuries in children under 16 deemed preventable. Most cases (63%) were managed non-operatively, and 43% required follow-up.
Following the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions, hand injuries increased, with a shift toward sports-related mechanisms and fewer preventable injuries. Despite this reduction, preventable injuries remain a substantial public health concern, highlighting opportunities for targeted safety interventions.
PMID:
42893211
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 18 Oct 2026.
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