Epidemiology of isolated hand injuries in the United Arab Emirates

AIM: To provide suggestions for hand injury prevention by study the demography and risk factors of casualties suffering from isolated hand injuries. METHODS: All trauma patients with isolated hand injuries who were admitted to Al Ain Hospital for more than 24 h during a period of 3 years were studied. Patient demographics, location, mechanism/time of injury, and length of hospital stay were all analyzed. RESULTS: Two hundred and ten patients were studied. Their mean age was 29.7 years. Males constituted 92%. Sixty-five point one percent of all cases were from the Indian subcontinent. The workplace was the most common location of injury (67.1%), followed by the home (17.1%) and road (6.2%). Machinery caused 36.2% of all injuries, followed by heavy object (20.5%) and fall (11%). Cases injured at home were young (P < 0.0001) with an associated higher incidence of females (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Male workers in Al Ain city are at greater risk of sustaining hand injuries, predominantly from machinery. Safety education, personal protection, and the enforcement of safety standards are essential to the prevention and avoidance of hand injury.