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Tell me if a Dr. Appt. is worth it, please!


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This afternoon I am very sure I broke the tip of my middle finger...

 

I had pulled the stove out and had the stove top up and was scrubbing the sideholding onto the top edge of the stove when the top slammed down, crushing the tip of the finger.

 

Im in a good deal of pain, pain shooting up my arm. The joints are not hurt at all... I can bend the finger. The opposite side of the nail is what is injured. It is very swollen and bruised. I have a finger splint I can use. Would there be any highky compelling reason to have this checked or could I just wait it out to heal on its own?

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When I took my son to the doctor for a broken finger many people told me I shouldn't bother, as they had broken their own fingers and they had healed fine without seeing a doctor. They would show me their finger as proof, and every time the finger was noticeably crooked. If you value straight fingers I'd have it checked. Also, you could have done damage to the blood supply.

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Do you have access to an advice nurse? If I'm ever unsure about whether to go in or not, I can call the nurse and he/she will let me know if I should come in. If a visit isn't needed, she will tell me what I should do instead and let me know what changes would warrant an immediate visit. I hate going to the doctor and the advice nurses save me unnecessary trips and let me know when I really should just suck it up and be seen.

 

Sounds painful. Sorry I don't have better advice.

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I did the same thing to my big toe, and now (6 months later) I wish I'd gone to the doctor! Scar tissue built up and now I can only bend my toe about 1/3 as far as my other big toe. I'm sure if I had done toe-bending exercises I could have avoided this. Not such a big deal (unless I'm trying to put on sandals, or one of the kids accidentally steps on my toe!), but it would be a bigger deal on a finger.

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I would go to a doctor to be on the safe side. Fingers are nothing to mess with and I'd be concerned about the pain shooting up your arm.

 

My DD dropped a 14 lb frozen turkey on her foot a few years ago, and it smashed her big toe. Dr. said no need to go in, but I wish we had because that toe is bigger than the one on the other foot. Surely something could have been done.

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Thanks. I went in this morning since I didn't see it as an emergency. The tip of the bone is crushed with multiple fractures, so it is splinted. I like the splint that I had bought at the pharmacy a long time ago better and will probably us it instead. The Dr. said that if the bleeding had been under the surface of the nail, they would have drained the blood, but it was all in the tissue and would be absorbed, so no need. He said to take Motrin 600. Not sure if I will... I am very picky about taking medications... we'll see how the day goes and maybe I'll take one...

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It's hard to know. My son once had a broken finger and all they did was put a splint on it so he couldn't bend it. You can make one of those at home and save the consultation fee...however if there is more damage with the smash of the oven, you may want to do something rather than regret it for years to come and have unnecessary pain.

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