Help! Swollen finger caused by ring?

[seahorsegurl]

I''m hoping all of you knowledgeable PS folks can help me out. I got engaged a month ago (almost to the day) and have been wearing my engagement ring daily. About a week ago, I noticed a red spot on my finger. Well, the spot has grown into a very large swollen spot (my finger just went up a size and a half). I''ve read thru some of the past posts on here about allergic reactions, but the skin on my finger isn''t itchy or broken out. Could this be some sort of allergic reaction? I also haven''t injured it that I know of. It''s swollen with a definitive knot under the skin. I''m doubtful my family doctor will have any answers, but I do have an appointment scheduled in a few weeks. In the meantime, I''m hoping you guys can help me out as I REALLY miss wearing my E-ring on my left hand. (So far, my right hand has yet to show any symptoms). I''ll attach a couple of pics. Thanks in advance for everyone''s help!

 

[seahorsegurl]

The underside of the ring

 

[akmiss]

Oh seahorsegurl, I am so sorry. You have such a beautiful VC ring! An allergic reaction is the only thing I can think of. Or could it be too small and causing some irritation that way? Can I ask how long your finger has been swollen? I really wish I had some answers for you.

 

[iheartscience]

Oh no-that looks painful! I hate to be a Debbie Downer, but it does seem like your ring is what''s causing it since it''s in the exact place you''re wearing it. (I''m no expert, of course, just my opinion!) I would go to your family doctor if you can''t get a dermatologist appointment and get it checked out. Keep us posted!

 

[hairgirl95]

Man, that just stinks!! Stunning e-ring and its giving you the finger fits. Do you normally wear rings on any finger? If so, have you ever had problems before? Maybe there is a different alloy in this setting? I would start there first. As the others have said, maybe it is a little too small? I really don''t know what else would cause this. I am so sorry--I know how naked you feel when you get used to wearing the finger bling.

Wait...I had another thought--did you get a bug or spider bite? That could cause the redness, swelling, and irritation. I throw this thought out because a couple of years ago, I got some sort of a bite on my cheek. No clue when it happened, didn''t feel it happen, started out as a little red dot, kept growing, ended up the size of a half dollar, red, swollen, and itchy. The doc said it was a bug bite of some sort and told me to use cortisone cream. Maybe try that?

On a brighter note--congrats on the engagement and the pretty ring!!!

 

[swingirl]

A little chunk of soap stuck under your ring could cause an irritation.

 

[Nicki]

It doesn''t look like a skin irritation, what it looks like is a reaction to a bug bite, especially if it''s hard under the skin. It''s possible you could have gotten a spider bite while you were sleeping and not known about it.

 

[WTNLVR]

Hopefully it''s just a bug bite. wait for the swelling to go down completely. The put the ring on again. If it swells up again you probably are allergic to the alloy in the ring. Good luck.

 

[D2B]

That is so weird, in that I have almost the identical problem on my eternity ring finger. Except I have worn this ring for 7 months and today for the first time this happend. Almost like a little red bubble raised bit under the skin??? Please tell me you cant get allergic after 7 months to platinum???????

Looking forward to what everone has to say and hope yours goes away asap.

d2b

 

[Nicki]

Date: 4/30/2008 1:11:32 PM
Author: WTNLVR
Hopefully it''s just a bug bite. wait for the swelling to go down completely. The put the ring on again. If it swells up again you probably are allergic to the alloy in the ring. Good luck.

You could move your E-ring to the other hand until the swelling goes down...that will also give you another test finger.

 

[krisvrn]

sorry about your finger, make sure after you wash you hands, take ring off and dry finger real well. also make sure soap is not under ring. i would take ring off at night to give your finger a break. moisture in the ring causes major irritation.

 

[seahorsegurl]

Thanks for everyone''s help. I''m a regular ring wearer and the ring I use to wear on this finger pre-engagement had what I believed was white gold on the inside of the head much like my VC ring. When my finger was "normal size" the ring fit well if not a little on the loose side. I actually don''t use bar soap at all, only liquid soap. I do wear my rings all of the time, at night, in the shower, ect. I have a traveling job, so every Monday-Friday (or sometimes two weeks straight) I''m in hotel rooms and I would be sick if I accidentally left them somewhere. While I''m hoping it''s a bug bite (who in the world would ever hope to have a spider bite?!

LOL) I too think it has to be something with the ring. I''ve heard that Rhodium plating could prevent an allergic reaction, think this would work on the bottom part of my ring as well? Do jewelers do platinum platings?
I''m so sorry to hear that you too D2B are in the same predicament I''m in. My finger has a red circle where the bump is and the skin has stretched. We''ll see what the doc says and let you guys know.
Thanks again everyone!

 

[Octavia]

Please do let us know. From the discoloration on the inside of your ring, I''d guess it is an allergy but I''m no expert. I hope it''s nothing serious, though, and that your finger gets better soon!

 

[Elmorton]

Is the red mark going around your finger, like you have a red mark all the way around where your ring was?

During our honeymoon, DH got a red rash right where his ring was. It didn''t exactly itch or hurt, but it was swelling up, his skin was peeling slightly, and the ring was uncomfortable to wear.

I thought SURE it was a gold allergy and I was heartbroken. Called my jeweler- and this is somewhat common. Some people are allergic to their own sweat, basically. If your finger is sweating, moisture can get trapped under there and cause a reaction. Has it been warmer where you are lately, or did you wear your ring when you worked up a sweat?

DH doesn''t wear his ring to work out, to golf, in the shower, and takes it off if he knows he''ll be out in the hot sun. Hasn''t had a reaction since!! I hope yours clears up just as easily! That ring is too beautiful to not be worn

 

[seahorsegurl]

Octavia - I got really scared for a second when you mentioned the discoloration on the inside of my ring. Then I realized I hadn''t said that the head of my ring is made of white gold, which is why there''s a strip on the inside that''s a different color. (Which also happens to be right where the big red lump on my finger is

) I was pondering whether I could have rhodium/platinum plated just on the head and on the strip on the inside. Basically, just over the white gold.
El - While I probably should be working out, I haven''t been

. We''ve had pretty cool weather here lately as well and the part of my finger where the band would hit isn''t affected.
We''ll see what my doc says next Monday. I may be back on here crying on everyone''s shoulder looking for possible solutions.
Thanks again everyone.

 

[Octavia]

Oh, wow, I''m sorry! On my monitor, it looks like the metal has done something funky, I didn''t realize it was a strip of white gold!

So, scratch what I said...hopefully it''s not the metal after all.

 

[FrekeChild]

Are you allergic to nickel? I know it''s a pretty common allergy, and I''m wondering if the wg was alloyed with it. My mom can''t wear white gold for that reason...

I hope you get this figured out soon. It''s too pretty of a ring not to wear.

 

[iheartscience]

Date: 5/2/2008 10:00:08 PM
Author: seahorsegurl
Octavia - I got really scared for a second when you mentioned the discoloration on the inside of my ring. Then I realized I hadn''t said that the head of my ring is made of white gold, which is why there''s a strip on the inside that''s a different color. (Which also happens to be right where the big red lump on my finger is

) I was pondering whether I could have rhodium/platinum plated just on the head and on the strip on the inside. Basically, just over the white gold.

El - While I probably should be working out, I haven''t been

. We''ve had pretty cool weather here lately as well and the part of my finger where the band would hit isn''t affected.

We''ll see what my doc says next Monday. I may be back on here crying on everyone''s shoulder looking for possible solutions.

Thanks again everyone.

Hmmm...it seems like you''re allergic to the white gold part, then. White gold should already be rhodium plated...maybe you could get that portion platinum or yellow gold plated? And worse case scenario, could you get the head changed to yellow gold?

 

[Elmorton]

Freke, I think I remember from ring shopping that nickel isn't used in the WG alloy anymore because so many people were allergic to it - but the WG rings that my grandmas wear (from the 1940's) DO have nickel as an alloy, which is why those rings don't return to yellow after 60 years of wear. I wonder if VC uses a vitage alloy? That would be strange, but I suppose it shouldn't be ruled out.

Regardless, sounds like a metal allergy. I would think though that the part of the ring can be platinum plated easily though - DH and I plan to re-do my progs in plat, and our jeweler said it was a relatively easy and inexpensive (~$50) process.