The best finger to get blood from is your ring finger. When performing a finger-prick test, use the side of your ring finger. It is where circulation is at its peak, and you are more likely to collect a complete sample from this one finger.
Note: The best locations for finger sticks are the 3rd and 4th fingers of the non-dominant hand. Do not use the tip of the finger or the center of the finger. Avoid the side of the finger where there is less soft tissue, where vessels and nerves are located, and where the bone is closer to the surface.
By the way: make sure to avoid pricking thumbs and index fingers as they are most commonly used to touch and feel.
Once your hands are warm and dry, use the lancet on the side of your “favorite” finger. This may be mostly mental, but when it's early morning and my hands are cold, using a tried-and-true finger (left little finger, for me) really helps.
Correct selection of puncture site – The middle or ring finger should be used, ideally of the non-dominant hand, as they are generally less calloused and less sensitive to pain compared to the index finger or thumb. The thumb should also be avoided due to its pulse (arterial presence).
Recommended finger: the World Health Organisation recommends the middle or ring fingers are used for blood glucose tests (second and third fingers). You may want to avoid using your little finger due to the skin being thin.
The best finger to get blood from is your ring finger. When performing a finger-prick test, use the side of your ring finger. It is where circulation is at its peak, and you are more likely to collect a complete sample from this one finger.
Squeezing your finger
When you do that, you are getting some interstitial fluid rather than blood. A study shows that this “may lead to unreliable readings." Gently warming the hands ahead of time can help so you don't have squeeze so hard.
Finger prick blood glucose readings and sensor glucose readings won't always match and in fact are likely to be different. That's because sensor glucose readings come from the interstitial fluid (ISF), a thin layer of fluid that surrounds the cells of the tissues below your skin, not from your blood.
Wipe away the first drop of blood because it may be contaminated with tissue fluid or debris (sloughing skin). Avoid squeezing the finger or heel too tightly because this dilutes the specimen with tissue fluid (plasma) and increases the probability of haemolysis (60).
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It is located between the first and third digits, between the thumb and the middle finger. It is usually the most dextrous and sensitive finger of the hand, though not the longest.
Handy tip: Stand up for the whole process — gravity helps your blood to flow. It can also help to swing your arm around as this gets the blood flowing. Push the lancet firmly on your finger until you hear a click.
The best place to prick the fingertip is on the side because it has the best blood supply, yet allows for the least painful fingerstick. Any finger may be used for a fingerstick. Firmly insert a new ACCU-CHEK Softclix lancet in the lancet holder until it snaps into place.
Wipe away the first droplet of blood with a cotton ball or gauze as indicated. Rationale: The first drop of blood may be contaminated with the alcohol used for disinfection, which may provide an inaccurate result. Newer meters no longer require the first drop to be wiped away.
Once your finger is punctured, wipe away the first drop of blood. If you find that a drop is not forming, it's helpful to promote blood flow by massaging from your wrist down to your fingertip. The additional lancets can be used if needed but it's recommended to choose a different finger.
Dirty glucose meters, unwashed hands, or damaged test strips can all lead to false test results. During digestion, the body sends sugar taken from food into the blood. Cells throughout the body use this sugar for fuel or store it for future use.
A significant finding of the study was glucose readings were significantly higher in the right arm compared to the left arm. Volunteers were alerted to having low blood glucose 30 percent of the time on the left arm, in comparison to 22 percent of the time on the right arm.
For the best results, rotate fingers and use each side of each finger to test with. Fingertips can become dry, cracked, and calloused with frequent blood sugar testing. You may also want to use a lotion specifically designed for people who do finger stick testing — ask your healthcare provider for a recommendation.
The best times to check your blood sugar are before meals and at bedtime. Your blood sugar meter may have software to help you track your blood sugar level.
Target blood sugar levels differ for everyone, but generally speaking: if you monitor yourself at home – a normal target is 4-7mmol/l before eating and under 8.5-9mmol/l two hours after a meal.
Finger tip blood glucose monitoring still provides the most accurate reflection of sugar levels in the blood stream. Blood samples from other, non-finger tip sites may not be “real time” as they lag behind the blood sugar found in finger-tip blood.
To get an accurate reading, check your blood sugar level in 10-15 minutes of waking up in the morning. Be sure to wash your hands thoroughly before you test – any contaminant can cause inaccuracies. Avoid any caffeinated beverages before you test because it can lead to a spike in blood sugar.
Of all your fingers, you might think your pinky is the most useless. But your little finger is particularly important in a strong grip and hand surgeons agree if you're going to lose one, the index finger is the best one to lose.
Constricted veins
Constricted vessels can be caused by the issues explained above (dehydration and vein collapse), but can also be related to what you drink. Constriction of the blood vessel is when the vessel is squeezed tight, making the diameter smaller. The main culprit in constricted vessels is caffeine.
The left-hand little finger, aka pinky, is the smallest and weakest of our fingers. It is shorter than other fingers.