Despite a weapons amnesty across the country, it’s believed there was at least one knife attack admission to the department over the weekend.

Mr Nichol said some of the patients appeared to be involved in a culture in which knife injuries were an acceptable risk — and where revenge was more important than justice.

“From my experience, most of these cases are local, and alcohol is almost universally involved,” he said.

“We are in the midst of doing a major audit of alcohol, in terms of it being the cause or associated with accident and emergency attendance just now.

“On a Friday and a Saturday night in A&E, it is unusual to come across somebody who hasn’t been involved with alcohol.

“In my time here, about seven years, there have always been knife-related injuries, both minor and serious, but it appears that has increased over the last two years in all the categories. I would say that on most shifts, maybe every second shift, you will see some sort of knife-related injury, and that goes right up the scale to life-threatening.”

Although the levels of knife crime seen in Tayside are lower than on the west coast, the recent increase in cases is “very significant”.

A&E staff have even noted a rise over the past few weeks, a period coinciding with the Government-backed national knife amnesty.

The number of weapons already handed in to police shows people are taking advantage of the opportunity to remove weapons from the streets.

But there has been concern, however, at the nature of some of the items in circulation — including swords and meat cleavers.

The consultant suggested there needed to be a significant cultural shift to arrest the increasing number of blade injuries.

“We have seen these sort of things (amnesties) happen before, and it can make a bit of a difference for a period of time,” Mr Nichol said.

“However, in the long term you really need to change the attitudes behind the problem too.

“Often when people come in with knife injuries they are reluctant to tell the police about it, because they are going to even the score in whatever way they consider appropriate.

“Of course, that means more work for us.”

It was reported today that the number of people jailed for carrying a knife in Scotland has risen by 20% over the last five years.

In 2004/05, the courts in Dundee imposed 22 prison sentences for possessing an offensive weapon — almost twice as many as in Aberdeen.

A spokeswoman for the Crown Office said, “Many young men regard carrying a knife as acceptable.

“We have to change that culture. Detection by the police, and prosecution in court, is only part of the package of measures needed.”