Aired August 21, 2019
Accidentally chopping off a fingertip isn't uncommon in the kitchen — and making the wrong move after doing so isn't either.
The movies may tell you to put a severed fingertip directly on ice to preserve it until you arrive at the emergency room, but Instagram's favorite doctor and Family Medicine Physician Dr. Mike Varshavski says otherwise — sort of.
"If you put it directly on ice, you'll damage the tissue," the doctor explains. "It's like frostbite."
Here are the four steps to follow instead:
- Wrap the severed fingertip in some sort of tissue — or a wet towel, preferably, the doc says.
- Place the wrapped fingertip in a plastic baggie.
- Fill a separate plastic baggie with ice
- Place the plastic baggie with the severed fingertip in the ice-filled baggie.
Now, whether or not the fingertip can be reattached at the hospital will be determined on a case-by-case basis, of course, Dr. Mike says, but "get to the emergency room with this [baggie] as fast as possible."
