Severe hand injuries: mechanisms of occurrence and prevention: a review

<b>Introduction:</b> Hand injuries are common, accounting for between 7 and 28% of all injuries. These are both closed injuries (joint dislocations and bone fractures) and open injuries (wounds and amputations). They occur in workplaces, in agriculture, during housework, sports, and during traffic accidents. <br><br><b>Aim:</b> The aim of the paper was to review the literature and present own experiences on the mechanisms of occurrence and methods of preventing severe hand injuries. <br><br><b>Material and methods:</b> Data from the literature were obtained from the Medline and PubMed databases, using keywords such as those in this paper. In addition, data from the author's institution experience are presented. <br><br><b>Results:</b> Various mechanisms of hand injuries when operating various devices, e.g., circular saws, angle grinders, mechanical presses, agricultural machinery, and fireworks, are presented. The most common causes of injury at operating these devices are discussed. Methods to prevent injuries that are specific to each device were discussed. The number of serious accidents in factories and workplaces has decreased noticeably over the last 10 years, while their incidence in households remains unchanged. <br><br><b>Conclusions:</b> Most injuries occur when operating devices with a rotating blade: circular saw, angle saw, and manual circular grinder. The cause of these injuries is most often careless handling of tools and failure to follow the operating instructions when tinkering at home. <br><br><b>Relevance of the study to the development of the field:</b> The results of this work may contribute to increasing public attention to the observance of safety when operating mechanical equipment.