Digit Damage: Keep Fingers, Toes Crossed
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Although they are vulnerable, our fingers and toes are important to us -- we could live without them, but things would be much more difficult.
Below are five first-aid tips for some of the nasty things that can happen to our digits.

1) Our digits are especially susceptible to cuts and puncture wounds.
Bleeding can be stopped by adding pressure with a clean cloth or sterile gauze. Wounds should be flushed out with clean, soapy water.

2) Smashed fingers and toes can sometimes result in blue or purple blood accumulation under the nail bed.
This can be very painful.
In a cooperative child, the pain can often be alleviated by using a pair of pliers to heat up the end of a bent paper clip with a flame.
The tip of the red-hot paper clip can then be touched to the nail bed at the center of the blood accumulation (subungual hematoma).
Old blood should come out immediately.
If not, the affected digit can be soaked in soapy water for a few minutes.

3) Splinters can be annoying but are rarely dangerous.
If the area around the splinter is not red, swollen or surrounded by pus (i.e., infected), removal can be attempted.
The area should be washed with soap and water. To extract the splinter, use a needle and tweezers cleaned with a povidone-iodine solution or rubbing alcohol.
The needle is used to open up the skin over the splinter so that the end of the splinter can be grasped with the tweezers.
Splinters under the fingernail should only be removed if their ends can be grasped with tweezers.
Afterward, the area should be washed again with soap and water.

4) Insect bites and stings can often affect the digits.
If a stinger is observed, remove it by scraping it off with a credit card or similar card.
Then apply an ice pack for 10 minutes at a time.
Antihistamines may be given. If there is a history of anaphylaxis to insect stings, give the child a dose of his epipen and call 911.

5) Frostbite can cause permanent damage or loss of digits.
With prolonged cold exposure, digits can become cold, white and numb. If immediate emergency health care is unavailable, the digits should be wrapped in sterile gauze.
To minimize damage, the digits need to be thawed using warm water (104-108 degrees Fahrenheit) for approximately 20 minutes.
The water should be changed periodically to keep it at a steady temperature.
The digits should not be massaged during the process.
If a digit comes off, it should be wrapped in a clean, damp cloth, sealed in a plastic bag and immersed in ice water.
Medical help should be sought immediately. With luck, the digit can be reattached later.