Before exercising, apply a warm, wet compress (or towel or heating pad) to your fingers and hands for 15 minutes. Use cold packs to minimize swelling. Apply an ice pack for 10 to 15 minutes at a time to the aching joint. You might wish to alternate between wet heat and cold packs. These methods can help reduce pain and inflammation of finger joints. In addition, exercise with proper form is essential to preventing injury. Try not to force the hand down; instead, pull it toward your chest. Also avoid bending the wrist back so far that it hurts when you return it to its normal position. These forms of exercise are called isotonic because they maintain the same level of tension on both muscle groups involved. Isotonic exercises are important in maintaining healthy finger joints. Finger joint pain may also be caused by problems with the bones, muscles, or ligaments surrounding the joint. For example, if there is damage to the cartilage cushioning the joint, then bone surfaces will begin to rub together causing pain and stiffness. Theses symptoms indicate that a problem exists with the joint itself rather than simply being sore from use. If this is the case, then surgery may be necessary to repair the damaged joint surface. Finger joint pain can be difficult to diagnose because the muscles around the joint may be the source of the problem.