Ingrown Toenail Treatment: Everything You Need to Know
People may undergo several types of pain in their lifetime. And if an ingrown toenail has been bothering you for a long time, you may have put cotton under the nail fold in the vain expectation that the pain will just go away after you snipped a “V” in the middle of the nail. These time-honored methods don’t work and may even make you more susceptible to illness. If nothing else, you’ll try a little toilet surgery in the hopes of finding relief.
Home therapy is no longer enough. It’s time for ingrown toenail treatment. Treating ingrown toenails is vital to avoid infection, which can cause discomfort and a longer healing time. Meanwhile, there are five treatment options:
- A slant back operation.
- Partial nail removal.
- Whole nail removal.
- Partial permanent nail removal.
- Total permanent nail removal.
All five options are permanent. And based on prior ingrown toenail experiences and how bad your infection is, you may make an informed decision.
What Is an Ingrown Toenail?
An ingrown toenail is caused by a damaged nail edge that no longer fits correctly into the side groove. Pain, redness, swelling, and discharge are all signs that the nail has pierced the skin. In other cases, a bit of nail gets embedded in the side tissue and causes the tissue to pile up (hypertrophied).
How Do You Know You Have an Ingrown Toenail?
Your symptoms and the toe’s appearance can help you make an accurate diagnosis of an ingrown toenail.
An ingrown toenail can be diagnosed by your healthcare provider (who may be your regular doctor or a foot expert known as a podiatrist). The doctor will inspect the skin near the nail’s edge, and the ingrown toenails can be diagnosed if the skin is red, swollen, prickly, and sensitive.
What Causes an Ingrown Toenail?
Various things can cause ingrown nails, but the two most prevalent culprits are incorrectly cut nails and poorly fitted shoes. Tight shoes compress the side of the nail. Torn or peeled nails might cause the nail edge to expand into the groove’s corner. Inflammation (swelling, discomfort, redness) and infection can result from a torn nail.
Treatment
If you have an ingrown toenail, your doctor may propose surgery if you have recurring ingrown toenails or a disease like diabetes that increases the risk of complications from ingrown toenails.
Depending on the severity of your condition, you may need to have a portion or the entire toenail removed.
Doctors use scissors and other equipment to take your toenail from its bed, cutting from the ingrown side to the cuticle once you’ve been prepared. Once they’ve sliced it, they’ll remove it. If both sides of your nail are ingrown, the entire nail may have to be removed.
Your doctor might use cautery or acidic solutions to disturb the nail matrix from which your nail grows. This stops the bleeding of your fingernail. As a result, your nail will most likely not grow back. You may notice a change in the appearance of your nail if it does regenerate.
Finally, your doctor may apply a bandage slathered with petroleum jelly on your toes.
Ingrown toenails are unsightly and uncomfortable, but they may easily be removed. Soaking the nail can alleviate discomfort within a few days in many cases. If the problem persists, make an appointment for ingrown toenail treatment. If you have an ingrown toenail, don’t trim it yourself at home. Cut your nails straight across rather than tapering them to fit the contour of your toe.