Image by The Book of Biff
I haven’t had a splinter since I was a troublesome young boy who made dens and treehouses in the woods. That was, until the other day when I had this nagging, dull pain in my thumb. I looked down and it was one of those annoying ones. Really small and really deep. It was parallel to the skin’s surface too so getting it out wasn’t as easy as just pushing it up from the bottom!
Unlike Biff above, however, I decided to not go overkill and removed the little bugger as easily as I possible could.
Three simple steps to splinter removal
First off, the splinter may actually be forced out naturally by your body. But if, like me, you’re an impatient guy who wants it sorted right away, here’s how to go about it.
- Wash your hands thoroughly before removing the splinter. Not only will this prevent nasty infections, but it will also soften your skin so that it’s easier to get the splinter out.
- Sterilise a needle and use it to open up the skin enough to grab the annoyance with a pair of tweezers.
- Grab the end of the splinter with the tweezers and back it out of the skin. Wash the area and you’re done.
More difficult splinter removal
Removing a splinter is easier than cracking a joke about Britney Spears going off the rails again. But sometimes, the splinter will find it’s way too deep to reach, or worse still, behind a nail.
- Splinter behind the nail. If the splinter is behind the nail, the best thing for you to do is go to the doctor and see if he can cut the nail away to remove it. If you’re a badass, you can do this yourself. Also, if you’re a tough guy, you can just leave it until the nail grows out and forces the splinter to the surface.
- Organic splinter material. Organic splinters such as animal spines and plant thorns are much more likely to cause infection or toxic reactions. Look for signs of infection. Redness, swelling, oozing pus, and severe pain are all signs you may need amputation. Only kidding! But you may need to see a doctor for some drug-related treatment!
If you’ve got a man-related problem that you’d like to know how to cure, please leave a comment or contact us detailing your ailment (be it life-threatening or otherwise) and you might see an article show up that answers your prayers – so to speak!
February 23rd, 2008 at 9:42 am
Lay a sticky piece of tape (duct tape, etc.) going in the direction the splinter is leaning (so you don’t push it in further). Then yank.
February 23rd, 2008 at 10:23 am
@Robert – Great idea. Thanks for sharing
February 25th, 2008 at 9:58 am
super hot and long shower.
even got shards of glass out.
May 14th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
Sorry if this invades the guys club, but if you have a splinter that is too deep, instead of digging with a needle until you are cursing, try an onion. Yeah, it works. Take a piece of fresh onion, one layer, and press the inside curve of it against the skin where the splinter is. Duct tape it in place overnight. By morning the onion will help draw out the splinter so it is closer to the surface and you can use tweezers to get it out. Don’t use any ice as it will constrict the skin, instead, a soaking in warm water for a half hour or so should also help.