Researchers compared rates of sharp disposal-related injuries from 1993 to 1994 and 2006 to 2007 to see how improvements in sharps disposal practices impacted injury rates. They relied on data from the EPINet Sharps Injury Surveillance Research Group. Of 69 hospitals reporting data from 1993 to 1994, there were 7,854 total percutaneous injuries. Of 33 hospitals that reported data from 2006 to 2007, there were 1,901 total injuries.
Of the percutaneous injuries in 1993 to 1994, 36.8 percent were related to sharp disposals, while 19.3 percent of percutaneous injuries were related to sharp disposals in 2006 to 2007. From these two times periods, there was a 53 percent decline in sharp disposal-related injuries, suggesting newly engineered disposal containers and sharp devices has helped improve injury rates.
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