Power tools · #18 of 45 by ER visits

Paint sprayers: injury statistics

Powered paint sprayers and other sprayers. In 2025 they were involved in an estimated 14,511 emergency room visits in the US.

Paint sprayers
Photo: omerhaktan / Unsplash
14,511
ER visits in 2025
12%
admitted or transferred
+33%
change since 2016
25%
aged 65 or over

ER visits per year

2016–2025 · 283 sampled cases in 2025
2016: 10,87216’2017: 10,24417’2018: 10,07218’2019: 10,58519’2020: 9,92320’2021: 9,18721’2022: 9,75422’2023: 10,28423’2024: 14,10124’2025: 14,51125’
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Injury type

Share of ER visits, 2021–2025

Other25%
Laceration22%
Contusion or abrasion11%
Fracture9.7%
Strain or sprain6.8%
Thermal burn4.9%

Body part injured

Share of ER visits, 2021–2025

Hand17%
Finger13%
Lower trunk10.0%
Upper trunk8.5%
Eye7.1%
Head5.2%

Age of injured people

75% male · 2021–2025

0-42.1%
5-141.6%
15-246.3%
25-4427%
45-6438%
65-7416%
75+9.6%

Real cases

From NEISS case narratives, 2024–2025. Abbreviations expanded.

36-year-old male complains of finger laceration after painting walls at home and accidentally was cut on something on the wall. — diagnosis: Finger laceration.
46-year-old female was painting the deck and injured her back — diagnosis: Right low back pain.
43-year-old male was using a paint sprayer when he accidentally dropped it and it hit the ground and hit him in the right eye — diagnosis: Orbital wall fracture.
51-year-old male present to er complains of puncture wound l hand occurred 3mo ago. He reports he was running a paint brush with an auto ringer the metal piece pulled off and shoved into his hand. No loss of sensation but has ongoing bleeding — diagnosis: Laceration l ha.
Recalls

Recalls of paint sprayers

No CPSC recalls matched this tool type since 2010. Search all recalls.

Questions

How many people are injured by paint sprayers each year?

About 14,511 people were treated in US emergency rooms for injuries involving paint sprayers in 2025, according to CPSC's NEISS estimates. The average over 2021–2025 was 11,567 a year.

What are the most common injuries from paint sprayers?

Other is the most common diagnosis (25% of cases 2021–2025), and the hand is the most often injured body part (17%).

How often do injuries from paint sprayers need hospital admission?

12.4% of ER visits ended with the patient admitted or transferred to another hospital in 2021–2025.

About these numbers

National estimates from the CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS), product codes 887, 888. A case is counted if the tool appears in any of its three product fields. Estimates under 1,200 or based on fewer than 20 cases are flagged. Methodology · CSV

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