Alcohol-related hand injuries

The study was based on 1199 patients consecutively treated for hand injuries in the Second Department of Surgery of the Jagiellonian University in Krakow between the years 1987 and 2000. Three hundred and twenty of these patients (26.6%) had consumed alcohol several hours before an accident. Data collected from an interview with the patient and a doctor on duty were used in the study. Routine tests for blood alcohol concentration were not carried out. Young men (89.3%), mostly manual workers (74.3%) (p < 0.001), constituted the majority of patients in the alcohol group. They were younger on average (p < 0.001) than sober patients. In most cases, the accident had happened at home (65.9%) (p < 0.001) and the main cause of injury was a cut with glass (p < 0.001). Despite only minor injuries they were treated in hospital due to their state of intoxication. The degree of hand disability was higher (p < 0.05) than with sober patients. The average cost of treatment in a state of intoxication was more than twice as high as the cost of treatment in sober patients. Alcohol-related hand injuries present a major medical and socioeconomic problem.