painful PIP right hand middelfinger

I have pretty much the same issue but in my left hand, middle finger PIP.  The injury developed from repeated dynos onto very thin crimps.  I had an x-ray done, which showed no damage to the joint.  There is some swelling around the left middle finger PIP.  I can climb on it easy with no irritation (buddy taped for protection), but it is usually swollen.  The only time it hurts is if I make a tight fist (more of tightness though), or if the finger gets a side/shear load such as hitting a fixed object. I have tried contrast baths, which provide some immediate relief but does not seem to provide long term relief.  I've been climbing maybe once per month for the last 2-3 months, just easy stuff, in order to let the finger rest.  I haven't seen too much improvement though.  Is it safe to climb on, as long as I stick with easy stuff/open hand grips. I would appreciate any tips as well.

I love PIP injuries, can't shake them. Anyway this site popped up fairly recently -- http://climbinginjuries.com/ It has some vague info suggesting putty therapy / ice/heat therapy, but also has a mildly active forum that might be worth a try. The impression I have from my personal experience is that if you REALLY want a one time injury, and not a recurrent problem, don't climb till the pain is gone, plus a week or two. Either that or pay out of pocket to see a true finger / joint specialist who won't roll his eyes at you like a GP will. I can never bring myself to do either, and to date it has meant a year of almost getting back to baseline followed by fresh (re)injury.

HiThis sound like a tweak to the cruciate pulley of the flexor tendon-  It will heal with the help of a couple of weeks cutting back to easy vertical climbing/no crimping, look at the treads above  on this forum for therapy and also check out the 2010 yearbook for 8a that has an article on this and other finger problems Björn