Ring Removal Swollen Finger

Getting rings off injured fingers without cutting them

Step by Step

Rings should come off early after a hand or finger injury, before swelling makes it impossible. If a ring is stuck, try raising the hand above the heart for a few minutes. Then compress the finger and slide with a lubricant. If that fails, use the string method: pass thread or dental floss under the ring toward the hand, then wind the other end snugly around the finger from the tip toward the ring, and unwind the ring side slowly so it corkscrews off. Stop if the finger turns blue, cold, or very painful. If the finger is injured, deformed, or the ring still will not budge, let a clinic cut it off with a ring cutter, which takes a minute. Cutting a ring is always cheaper than losing a finger.