Ingrown toenails

What are ingrown toenails?

Ingrown toenails occur when the sides or corners of the nail grow into the skin next to the nail. The nail can pierce the skin resulting in an infected ingrown toe nail.

What causes ingrown toenails?

• Poor fitting footwear.
• Incorrect cutting of the toenails.
• Direct injury to the toe and toenail, for example, kicking a football, stubbing your toe, dropping something heavy on your foot.
• Genetic predisposition where the sides of the nail curl down and around into the skin.

What are the symptoms of ingrown toenails?

• Skin next to the nail becoming tender, red, swollen, or hard
• Pain when pressure is placed on the toe
• Pain
• Bleeding
• Pus if the toe becomes infected
• Overgrowth of skin around the toe

What are the treatment options for ingrown toenails?

Conservative Treatment

One of our podiatrist at Beyond Podiatry can apply some topical local anaesthetic gel, and gently trim away the section of the nail that is pressing into the skin.

Surgical treatment

Nail surgery is a common procedure performed by most podiatrists to effectively treat an ingrown toe nail. A 'partial Nail Avulsion' is a minor nail procedure which aims to permanently treat ingrown toe nails. The procedure is usually performed in our rooms, takes around one hour and the patient is able to walk immediately afterwards. The procedure itself is performed under local anaesthetic via injection into the toe to numb the area. The anaesthetic will wear off in about one to two hours. At Beyond Podiatry in Newcastle and the Lake Macquarie, we can provide the best treatment solutions for your ingrown toe nails.

Sources: www.podiatry.asn.au | www.healthline.com | www.foothealthfacts.org