Worst Materials for Splinters

This is relatively common when walking or swimming in shallow water areas where sea urchins are present, generally very painful & irritating if you let it embed in your skin. There is a high chance of infection if not removed. Quantities of stings & spines are considered very harmful, potentially leading into long life complications and can be lethal if not properly treated. Tweezers along with antibiotics, are recommended in order to effectively treat sea urchin spines; seek medical care if the condition gets worse overtime.

Sometimes harder to be seen than wood and other splinters; making glass splinters occasionally very hard to remove barely being seen. If consisting of dirt, feces, or chemicals, it could be harmful & infectious to health. In most cases, these splinters along with other splinter types are removed via the use of tweezers and rubbing alcohol, pressing, and/or other methods; in some cases a doctor/podiatrist.

Experienced when living on the desert, or in other locations where cactus are present. Cactus thorns can be a painful nuisance, and can be tricky to remove. Using a tweezer is usually the most effective way for cactus thorn removal, but depends of the position of the thorn.

Hair silvers are slightly uncommon types of splinters; more common in the barber workforce. Comparing to wood, hair strands are generally a thinner form of splinter harder to remove via fingernails or tweezers; one hair strand could cause significant damage leading to infection, along with extremely painful sensations as it slowly moves around the skin. In most cases, hair is either removed by waiting it out for a few days/weeks, or immediately removed by painful methods via tweezers, needles, or surgery in severe cases.

The most common type of splinter. Wood splinters are known for causing most infections, but frequently can be removed by tweezers and fingernails, however are difficult to remove if deeper embedded in the skin; otherwise left alone, wood splinters are generally nuisances causing painful sensations.

As they are usually sharp, generally extremely painful if the foreign body is metallic, and can be harmful if it causes infection or contains chemicals; some methods in removal terms can make the situation worse. Best effective to use a tweezer, or the safest method is to seek medical attention.

Getting a usually tiny or small sharp rock inside your skin is rare, but can be extremely painful if embedded deep; more common if you walk barefoot in rocky or gravel areas. Either use a tweezer or press around the area for removal.

Getting porcupine quills is common on dogs; painful and irritating to remove in quantities, It's generally encouraged to see a veterinarian if you see your pet covered with quills and advised not to remove them yourself. When it comes to humans, they can be often hard to remove; prolonged embedded in the skin, an infection is possible if the quills contain bacteria.

Pencil leads are mostly harmless but can be painful in some cases; though there's a significant or minimal chance of infection. Ever gotten a pencil lead stuck in your skin and always thought the lead contains actual toxic lead? It's often thought that hence the name, pencil leads consists of lead; however, modern pencil leads contain graphite. In comparison to lead, graphite is much less toxic and won't harm you in anyway unless high concentrations of it are injected in the body. Pencil leads are also known to be stuck in the body for years or even a decade(s) without removal.

Plastic splinters are generally common, but less common compared to wood. Occasionally comes unnoticed, but can be painful. Plastic splinters can be often removed by common removal methods.