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KidsCare Online

Splinter, Sliver

A splinter or sliver is a foreign body (FB) embedded in the skin. Most of these are slivers or splinters of wood. Others are slivers (thin fragments) of glass, metal or plastic. A few are thorns or cactus needles.
Most slivers are in the superficial skin and do not cause much pain. Deep or perpendicular slivers are painful to pressure.
Pencils contain graphite (harmless), not poisonous lead. Even colored graphites are nontoxic. They will cause a tattoo, however, and should be scrubbed out.
If slivers need to be removed in a medical setting, it's better to see them quickly before they become hidden by swelling or pushed in more deeply by the parent or child.