Table of Contents

introduction
for fingers where the distal part is not severely injured and the ring can be taken off
- technique 1: make it slippery
- technique 2: use elastic or wool to reduce the oedema then spiral it off
for tungsten carbide rings - crack it with pliers
for all other cases - cut the ring off

removing a ring from a finger

introduction

removing a ring from a finger of and injured wrist/hand/finger is one of those important, common ED procedures to prevent the ring trapping oedema distally to it and then causing ischaemic necrosis of the finger.
the longer the ring is left on, the more difficult it can be to remove.

for fingers where the distal part is not severely injured and the ring can be taken off

these techniques preserve the ring

technique 1: make it slippery

if the finger is not too swollen, using glass cleaner such as Windex, or soap and water

technique 2: use elastic or wool to reduce the oedema then spiral it off

can be painful if the finger is injured, so consider using suitable analgesics
wool can be used but perhaps the best in ED is the elastic band of an oxygen mask as shown in the video:

for tungsten carbide rings - crack it with pliers

for all other cases - cut the ring off

this requires a ring cutter device and often some patience if it is a little blunt
this may not cut through certain metals!