SR Therapies

Ingrowing Toe Nails

When a toenail starts to curve downwards, it can begin to press into the skin, becoming ingrown and causing pain, bleeding and infection. Ingrown nails have several causes, including pressure from shoes, heredity, improper nail trimming, previous injuries, and fungal infections.

And sometimes there is no identifiable cause of ingrown nails other than abnormal growth.Thin, or bendable, toenails are prone to curving inward and becoming ingrown (as are fungal nails). In fact, thin toenails can sometimes fold in at the corners so severly that they take on a tubular shape. It is possible to make curving nails and ingrown curving nails worse by continually picking at them or cutting them too short.

(This is true for any ingrown nail) Bendable nails are best evaluated by a podiatrist for the most helpful course of treatment.To prevent ingrown toenails, allow the nail edge to grow out instead of cutting the corner. If this method fails to prevent or heal the ingrown toenail, seek the opinion of a podiatrist. For persistent or recurrent ingrown nails, minor surgery may be recommended.

Surgery For  Ingrowing Toenails

Persistent ingrown nails that cause frequent pain or infections may need to be treated with a simple and relatively painless nail procedure performed by a podiatrist on an outpatient basis. Some people mistakenly believe that ingown toenails have to be completely removed.This is usually not the case.

Often, an ingrown nail edge can be removed under local anesthetic and the base of the nail treated so that the edge does not form again as the nail grows out. Patients walk out of the office with a light dressing on the toe and are usually able to go about their normal activities with minimal discomfort.Bathroom surgery is never recommended for ingrown toenails - or any other ailment, for that matter.

Fearing painful nail surgery, some people will resort to self-surgery, using razors, knives, scissors to dig out painful nails. But an office-based procedure is less painful, significantly reduces the risk of infection and injury, and is much more effective, often providing permanent relief.Patients have come to my clinic after suffering for years with a painful toenail. They were afraid to have the toe looked at because they thought the only treatment was some barbaric and painful surgical procedure.

The truth is, it is rare that a nail has to be completely removed. Often just the edge of the nail needs to be removed in a simple procedure with little discomfort.Most people say this discomfort is less than what they were already tolerating from the nail, and if they had known it was so easy, they would have come in much earlier.

Reference: Great Feet For Life: Paul langer : DPM