Write an article based on this "Select a bandage that fits the injury. Use basic dressings to prevent infection. Dress the wound with sterile material. Use antibiotic creams as a part of the dressing. Secure the dressing in place with a bandage. Avoid loose ends from the bandage. Leave the tip of the finger or toe exposed. Tailor your bandage to properly cover the tip if it is injured. Cut the bandage into a “T shape”, “X shape”, or “crisscross” shape. Take caution not to wrap the area too tightly. Provide support for a sprain or broken bone. Use a splint for sprains or broken bones. Place gauze or folded dressing pads along the area for cushion. Secure the splint in place. Bandage the area using buddy taping. Start by applying tape above and below the injury. Wrap additional sections of tape."

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For minor cuts and scrapes, the purpose of the bandage is to prevent infection and promote healing. For more serious injuries, the bandage can help to prevent infection and provide protection for the injury while it heals. A finger or a toe injury can involve damage to the skin, the nail, the nail bed, sprained ligaments and tendons, or broken bones.  For injuries that only need protection from infection, simple dressings and regular band-aids will work fine. If the skin is broken, then properly dressing the area will prevent infection and control further bleeding. Use sterile pads, sterile gauze (Telfa works best), or very clean materials to cover the entire wound. Try not to touch the sterile part of the dressing that will be directly in contact with the wound. The risk of infection is increased with injuries that involve cuts, scrapes, or torn areas of the skin. Applying the antibiotic cream or ointment directly to the dressing is a good way to help prevent infection without directly touching the wound. Bandages are to be applied not too tightly, but tight enough to keep the dressing in place. Bandages that are too tight can interfere with blood flow. Be sure to cut or secure any loose ends from dressing material, bandages, or tape. This can cause pain, and possibly further damage, if the loose ends get caught or snagged on something. Unless the tip is part of the injury, leaving it exposed helps to watch for changes that might indicate problems in circulation. Plus, if medical attention is needed, leaving the ends of fingers and toes exposed helps doctors to evaluate for nerve damage. The fingers and toes can present challenges when they need to be bandaged. Gather materials that are larger than the area, so you can cut the large gauze, sterile dressing pads, and medical tape, in sizes suited to the area. Cutting the material this way helps to securely cover the tips of the injured finger or toe. The cut pieces should be designed to be twice the length of the finger or toe. Apply the bandage along the length of the finger or toe first, then down the other side. Wrap the other ends around the area. Use additional pieces of tape as need to secure the bandage in place. Also take care to cover all areas of broken skin with dressing materials, before applying the final bandage, in order to prevent infection. The bandage you apply may need to provide protection, prevent infection, promote healing, act like a splint, and prevent further damage to the injured area. A splint helps to immobilize the injury and prevent further, accidental injury. Select a splint that is the proper size for the injured digit. In some cases, a regular popsicle stick can be used as a splint. Try to immobilize the joint above and below the injury site with the splint. If the injury is to the first joint of the finger, this means try to immobilize the wrist and joints above the injury. This keeps the surrounding muscles and tendons from straining the injury or becoming damaged themselves. Carefully folded pieces of dressing material can be used between the injured digit and the splint to provide some cushion and prevent irritation. Use medical or paper tape to secure the splint, taking care not to wrap the area too tightly. Apply the medical or paper tape lengthwise first, with the digit on one side and the splint on the other, then wrap around the injured digit and the splint to keep it in place. Take caution not to wrap the area too tightly, but tight enough so the splint does not slide off. An adjacent finger or toe works just as well as a splint in most cases. Buddy taping helps to prevent free movement of the injured digit to allow the area to heal properly. Most commonly, fingers and toes 1 and 2, or 3 and 4, are paired or taped together. Always place small sections of gauze between the digits being paired to prevent irritation. Cut or tear 2 sections of non-stretch, white, medical tape. Wrap each piece around the areas just above and below the injured joint or break in the bone, including the buddy digit in the wrapping. Be careful to wrap securely but not too tightly. Once the digits are anchored to each other, proceed with wrapping additional sections of tape around both digits to secure them to each other. This method allows for the digits to bend together, but side to side movement will be restricted.