Hand tools · #4 of 45 by ER visits

Utility knives: injury statistics

Knives with replaceable blades, the most common cause of hand cuts in this group. In 2025 they were involved in an estimated 46,903 emergency room visits in the US.

Utility knives
Photo: barryalbert24 / Unsplash
46,903
ER visits in 2025
1.4%
admitted or transferred
+6%
change since 2016
12%
aged 65 or over

ER visits per year

2016–2025 · 897 sampled cases in 2025
2016: 44,20216’2017: 46,35417’2018: 43,11218’2019: 41,29819’2020: 42,74820’2021: 43,89421’2022: 38,93322’2023: 38,19923’2024: 43,46824’2025: 46,90325’

Injury type

Share of ER visits, 2021–2025

Laceration94%
Avulsion2.1%
Other1.0%
Puncture1.0%
Contusion or abrasion0.5%
Poisoning0.2%

Body part injured

Share of ER visits, 2021–2025

Finger54%
Hand21%
Lower arm8.1%
Wrist4.8%
Upper leg4.7%
Lower leg2.6%

Age of injured people

73% male · 2021–2025

0-40.7%
5-145.7%
15-2419%
25-4437%
45-6425%
65-748.9%
75+3.4%

Real cases

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

69-year-old male was opening up a package with a box cutter and cut his left index finger — diagnosis: Laceration finger.
60-year-old male cut his left index finger with a utility knife — diagnosis: Laceration finger.
37-year-old female, laceration right wrist, cut arm opening box with box cutter — diagnosis: Right wrist laceration.
34-year-old male walked into er with complaint of laceration to left hand. Patient states he was working on his own house around 1630 when he had set his knife down, happened to slip and tried to catch himself and landed on the blade. Patient states i.
Recalls

Recalls of utility knives

2 since 2010
Positec Recalls Blue Ridge Utility Knives Due to Laceration Hazard; Sold Exclusively at Target2023-05-11 · LacerationUtility knivesGreenlee Recalls Utility Knives Due to Laceration Hazard2012-02-28 · LacerationUtility knives

Questions

How many people are injured by utility knives each year?

About 46,903 people were treated in US emergency rooms for injuries involving utility knives in 2025, according to CPSC's NEISS estimates. The average over 2021–2025 was 42,279 a year.

What are the most common injuries from utility knives?

Laceration is the most common diagnosis (94% of cases 2021–2025), and the finger is the most often injured body part (54%).

How often do injuries from utility knives need hospital admission?

1.4% 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 code 836. 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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