German hospitals are treating more people for violent knife injuries, according to new data from the trauma registry of the German Society for Trauma Surgery. A group of emergency physicians analysed cases in which someone was deliberately stabbed, identifying 3,325 violent knife injuries over the past ten years.
The number of severely injured patients has risen sharply, increasing from around 250 cases in 2019 to around 375 in 2023—a 50% rise. The registry shows that 86% of victims are men, with an average age of 31.3, and about 70% require emergency treatment on arrival. Eight percent die from their injuries.
Doctors warn that knife attacks are becoming more brutal and more targeted, with a growing number of stabbings to especially dangerous areas such as the neck and chest. Emergency physicians report that knife violence has become both more frequent and more severe across Germany.
