"I've got you...under my skin!" that popular song croons, but better sung than experienced, especially when it comes to slivers.

Getting a sliver stuck in your skin is a common experience. Slivers, or splinters, usually come from tiny pieces and shards of glass, wood, plants, metal or spiny animals. They get stuck usually on the topmost layer of your skin. Getting a sliver in your skin can be painful and it may also cause infection. The difficulty in removing your sliver may depend on the size of the sliver, where it embedded itself (for example, slivers in your nail are more difficult to remove than just under your skin) and how deep it has embedded itself in your skin. You can remove slivers yourself or you can ask someone else to help you. Here are some ways you can remove your sliver.

Materials Needed

Here are some things you need:

• Soap
• Warm water
• Povidone-iodine solution (more effective at killing bacteria than isopropyl alcohol)
• Cotton balls
• Needle
• Sticky tape

• Baking soda (For other uses of baking soda, read how to make baking soda applications)
• Hydrogen peroxide
• Tweezers
• Nail clippers
• Bee-sting swab
• Surgical gloves (optional)

First Things First

Once you've got a sliver under your skin, you must attend to the following tasks first:

Clean the affected area. Wash the wound and the area around it with soap and warm water. Be careful not to push the sliver even further in. You can also use a cotton ball doused with povidone-iodine solution for this purpose.

Seek and Remove

• Squeeze it out. Using your fingers, squeeze out the splinter from both sides and the bottom of the splinter, nudging it out from the angle where it came in.
• Soak it. Soak the affected area in warm water and leave it in for a few minutes until it becomes soft and wrinkly. When your skin has softened and contracted, it may become easier for you to pull out the sliver.

• Hydrogen peroxide. Prepare a solution of 1/2 water and 1/2 hydrogen peroxide. Pour it over the sliver and wait to see if the sliver pushes itself out from your skin.
• Wait it out. There are some cases when the sliver is trapped at the top layer of your skin but is not exposed enough to be pulled out. If it does not cause you any irritation, you can opt to wait for your skin to grow out and for the sliver to be make its way out by itself. It may also be easier to remove the sliver after one whole day.
• Tape it. Put sticky tape directly over the sliver and pull it out in one quick motion. Don't push the tape too hard on your skin as it might push the sliver in even further.
• Glue it. Use 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda mixed with water to make a paste. Apply this paste on the sticky side of the bandage and put it directly over the affected area. Wait for 24 hours before removing the bandage. The glue will harden over the sliver and pull it along when the glue is removed.


Normal non-toxic glue is also suggested for this purpose, but only use it when the wound is superficial or when it is only in the topmost layer of the skin. Do not use it if the wound is bleeding or if you are allergic to glue.


• Tweeze or clip. Clean your tweezers or nail clippers thoroughly using povidone-iodine solution, especially at the part that will come in direct contact with your skin when pulling the sliver out.

Capture the exposed bit of sliver between your tweezers or nail clipper. Don't push too hard on the sliver as it might cause the sliver to break. Pull out from your skin at the same angle it came in.

• Needle it. Sterilize a needle using your povidone-iodine solution. Using the pointed end, carefully break open the topmost layer of your skin over the area where the sliver is. Don't dig in too deep since you may induce bleeding. The idea is to open the skin in order to pull the sliver using your sterilized tweezers or nail clippers.

You can also use the needle to push the sliver upward from under your skin. Lay the needle lengthwise on your skin, over where the sliver is buried the deepest so that it forms a “T” shape with the sliver. Push the needle against the skin to encourage the sliver upward for removal.

• It's too deep! If you're feeling unsure about pulling a sliver out yourself, especially in tricky areas like your nails, you can go to a doctor to make sure that it is removed properly.

After Removal

Here are some things you can expect after getting rid of that sliver.

• See a doctor. If the sliver is particularly big, long and dirty, or if it caused a lot of bleeding, it's best to consult a doctor regarding possible infections. This is especially recommended for organic slivers, such as bee stings (Learn how to treat a bee sting) and spines from a sea urchin.
• Tetanus vaccination. If you're not up-to-date with your tetanus vaccination, your doctor may recommend you to get your shots after removing the sliver. This depends on the sliver's material and the degree of damage done to your skin.
• Protect from infection. You may apply an antibiotic cream over the affected area for a few days to prevent infection. You can also clean the area daily using soap, povidone-iodine solution or alcohol. Band-aids and bandages are recommended if you want to prevent infection or dirt from coming into contact with the affected area.

Prevention

To reduce complications, here are some tips to prevent getting slivers.

• Wear flip-flops when walking outdoors.
• Wear rubber gloves when gardening, doing woodwork or any activity where you may get splintered.
• Sweep your floors regularly.

No need to be scared of splinters. Just follow the simple procedures above and everything will be fine. Pretty soon, you won't have to worry about anything stuck under your skin anymore. You may also enjoy reading How To Remove A Spliter at Monster Guide.