Many New Year's Eve accidents - eight-year-old loses finger

Around the turn of the year, numerous patients were admitted to Leipzig University Hospital with firework injuries. As in previous years, hand and head injuries predominated, according to the hospital. On New Year's Day alone, the hospital recorded 137 patients with injuries or acute illnesses in the emergency department.

A significant proportion of the injuries were related to New Year's Eve. The number of acute and emergency patients treated annually in the Central Emergency Department had already exceeded the 40,000 mark for the first time in mid-December - an increase of around 14 percent compared to the previous year.

Eight-year-old loses several fingers

Among those treated as inpatients were three patients with serious hand injuries. Among them was an eight-year-old boy who had several fingers torn off by a firework that exploded in his hand. The boy had picked up the dud on New Year's Day, taken it home and wanted to throw it out of the window after lighting it.

The spectrum of diagnoses around the turn of the year ranged from typical injuries such as hand and head injuries to traumas caused by falls and poisoning from alcohol or other drugs, explained emergency physician André Gries. These injuries and illnesses reflect the well-known holiday-related pattern.

Young men particularly frequently affected

A recent study by Leipzig University Hospital also confirms the considerable health risks, especially for hand injuries, that result from the improper use of fireworks. The study, which includes data from over ten years, analyzed 155 injured people. 80 percent of those affected were men with an average age of 24. The hands were most frequently affected (53 percent). Surgery was required in almost a quarter of cases (24 percent). In almost half (47 percent) of the patients operated on, the injuries led to permanent functional limitations.