With regards to my ice time recommendation I go by what the Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Sports and Exercise Medicine recommend.
http://www.physiosinsport.org/media/wysiwyg/ACPSM_Physio_Price_A4.pdf
The PRICE guidelines.
What I should have said perhaps to make things more clear, was that cooling the finger to 10-15 degrees is ideal. However, this is not entirely practical. Fingers do not take long to cool as the tissues are very superficial. I would say 30 minutes is too long for fingers, but not, lets’s say for a knee or a shoulder. The amount of time needed will also vary on the extent of damage. So, you may need a bit more than 3 min sessions for some finger injuries. I always advise to use pain as a guide. If ice helps to subside pain, then that is good, if pain comes on strongly again (approx. 5/10 or more on a pain scale) then reapply and apply until pain decreases to 1-2 or 0/10, and that the finger should not be freezing or too numb. You can also ice, or “cool down” a finger if there is not much pain, but the finger feels to touch quite warm compared to the same finger on the other hand. For instance, when you are starting to climb again, or after your rehab exercises. It is very important not to overdo Ice application as you can have a negative effect on local nerves, and you can over tax the blood vessels.
