In Boxing, what does it do when...?

Question

As in movies, mainly, when the boxer has his eye swollen shut from being pounded, and someone puts a cold coin on it, or cuts the bruise open. What do those do?

Answer 1

It reduces the swelling so the boxer can see properly ....

You can't get away with cutting the swelling these days because (apart from cheating!) fights are stopped much sooner with cuts than they used to be.

Most 'cut men' in the corner use a small iron which is kept in ice during the rounds to reduce the swelling.

Answer 2

It help to reduce the swelling and temporary keeps the swelling down. If the eye gets too big the fighter can't see the punch coming and might get seriously hurt. Also the fight doctor or referee has the responsibility to stop the fight early to prevent the fighter from getting to hurt because of lack of vision.