In-Growing Toenails

In-Growing Toenail Treatment 

For effective treatments contact Premier Foot Clinic.

In- Growing Toenails 


There are two types of in growing toenails:

ACUTE – where a piece of nail actually pierces the skin, often resulting in infection and overgrowth of reactive tissue. It often affects younger patients and it can be the result of trauma, poor nail cutting techniques or skin changes due to hormones.

CHRONIC – where the nail shape gradually changes over the years, often associated with thickening and increased curvature (involution) of the nail. The nail edges press into the soft tissues, which can cause pain even with the lightest of pressures, and wearing shoes can become extremely painful.

What causes them?

There are multiple causes, some them simultaneously.

1. Poor nail cutting 
Cutting the nail too short or digging into the sides can leave a jagged edge in the side of the nail, leading to an in-growing toe nail as the nail tries to grow forward.

 2. Age
With age, the nail can become deformed and have irregular growth and texture - usually caused by repeated trauma due to continual wearing of enclosed shoes.

3. Previous injury/trauma
If the injury to the toe affects the base of the nail where the matrix (root) is, the direction of the growth of the nail can change - the nail can be deformed and thickened. 

4. Hereditary
Nail shape is inherited. Fan shaped nails, where the nail is wider at the furthest part of the toe, and involuted nails are prone to in-growing if not cut correctly.

5. Secondary causes
Some foot deformities, particularly toe deformities, such as hammered toes and hyper extended toe can cause continued increased pressure over the nail which can alter the direction of the nail growth in a similar way to an injured nail. 

How do you treat in-growing toe nail?


Treatment comprises of cutting the nail to remove the offending section and allows the nail to grow clear of the sides. This can be helped by clearing the sides of compact debris and callus. This conservative treatment can resolve the in growing nail as painlessly as possible and give you complete relief.

Advice on toenail cutting, self-management and footwear advice are also vital part of treatment.
Some acute cases however, may require more complex intervention such as a partial nail avulsion/ablation (nail surgery) or surgical nail edge excision. These are simple surgical procedures carried out at Premier Foot Clinic under local anaesthetic to make it pain free.

A Permanent Solution - Nail Surgery at Premier foot clinic
This is a minor surgical procedure carried out under local anaesthetic to remove part of or the whole of the nail. It is useful if you have a frequently occurring pain from your in-growing toe nail.
Where a small section of nail is removed, phenol is used over the root/matrix of the nail to stop this section of re-growing. Effectively, you have reshaped the nail so that it does not press in the soft tissues. Where the whole nail is removed, no nail will grow in the future. 

It takes 6-10 weeks to heal fully and does not require you to rest completely during the healing phase.
The procedure has a 95% success rate which means 5% of the people will have a regrowth. This is usually only partial and may be totally asymptomatic but if needed a further procedure can be carried out.

At Premier Foot Clinic, the nail surgery package consists of the surgery with 4 follow up dressings appointments. This ensures the healing is monitored throughout and any problems are dealt with promptly for the best outcome, with minimal discomfort and in the shortest time. 

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