Sprained finger help

[MrSmall]

welp, I sprained my finger catching a football in a weird way and i'm kinda concerned... I sprained my ankle a few years ago and the swelling never totaly went away. I jammed my thumb in a wrestling match this year and the swelling never totaly went away... now i just sprained my middle finger and i really want this swelling to go down lol..

Heres the thing, i iced it for a lil bit last night (it happened earlier that day) and tonight i cannot ice it cause i have no ice or anything in freezer /forum/images/graemlins/frown.gif

what should i do to make the swelling go down ? is icing it the only thing i can do?

also any ideas why my jammed thumb and ankle never totaly returned to normal?

[T-Gunner]

You must use ICE! You can buy it at a petrol station or from the supermarket. Better yet, buy someone of those ice cubes containers that go in your frezzer that you fill up with water, then you will never be without ice again!

If you did it yesterday I suggest that you ice for 15 minutes than put something warn on it for 20 minutes. (e.g. hot water bottle) then 20 minutes off, then reapeat the cycle to a maximun of 3 times in 6 hours.

Also you may want to strap it to your other outside finger so you lose your range of motion and don't over use it.

Most importantly, be smart and don't do anything that is going to hurt it or make it worse!

[G o r t]

Always ice within minutes and keep it on as long as possible or til you see a doctor.

The swelling can add scar tissue to the joint which can be permanent.

[Bahir]

Isnt there a reason for swelling to occur? I mean, the swelling must have something to do with the healing of the sprain, so perhaps swelling is actualy a good thing. Those are just my thoughts though... I myself hate spraining a bodypart. I sprained my ankle landing on someones foot last friday but I wont be able to rest it completely because I have a quarterfinal basketball game on saturday...

[G o r t]

[ QUOTE ]
Isnt there a reason for swelling to occur? I mean, the swelling must have something to do with the healing of the sprain, so perhaps swelling is actualy a good thing.

[/ QUOTE ]

Of course, swelling is is the bodies way of getting the extra fluid and nutrients to the damaged area to heal it. Swelling will happen regardless. Trouble is the body often over-reacts and there is <font color="red">excessive</font> swelling. This produces extra scar tissue around the damage which can take a long time go away. Sometimes it's permanent.

It's the same with bone. If you get a good knot on the shin and don't reduce the swelling, after it's healed there will still be a knot on your shin. Doesn't have to happen.

By the way, NSAID's can reduce swelling and blunt the pain but there is ample evidence that they interfere with the healing process of both muscle and tendons.

[ecko31s]

Wow, I never actually heard swelling explained in such depth. Thats some really good info.