Ingrown Toenail: prevention and treatment

Does your toenail grow inward into the skin of your toe?

You probably have an ingrown toenail (also called onychocryptosis). This most often occurs on the big toes. An ingrown toenail can cause redness, swelling, pain, and inflammation, and if left untreated, it can become infected.

To avoid this, it is advisable to:

• to wear shoes that are quite wide, especially at the toes;

• not to cut your nails too short;

• to treat a fungal infection (fungus) as soon as it appears.

But if your nail is already ingrown, you can take several steps to treat it.

At home

If you have an ingrown toenail, the first thing you can do is soak your foot in warm water with Epsom salt (available in pharmacies) or table salt for 15-20 minutes 2 to 3 times a day.

You can also apply antibiotic cream to the ingrown toenail and cover it with a plaster. Some people also place a cotton ball soaked in antibiotic cream under the ingrown toenail to reduce pressure. Note that this technique only works for a slightly ingrown toenail that can be lifted. Be careful, this must be done gently and could cause pain.

If, after a few days, these treatments have no effect or if the nail is painful or infected, it is important to consult your podiatrist quickly.

In the following cases, it is important not to attempt treatment at home, but to consult a professional quickly:

• diabetic people

• immunocompromised individuals

• hemodialysis patients

Consult a podiatrist for the treatment of your ingrown toenail.

It is obviously advisable to consult your podiatrist if you have an ingrown toenail. They can perform a medical nail trim and advise you on how to trim your nails in the future to prevent recurrence. If the situation is more serious (infected nail or recurring problem), your podiatrist might consider a permanent partial matrixectomy with phenol to eliminate the ingrown toenails.

A permanent partial matrixectomy is a minor surgical procedure lasting approximately 40 minutes, during which the podiatrist removes a thin strip of the nail and cauterizes the surgical site with phenol. The procedure is performed under local anesthesia at the clinic and is painless. The success rate of this procedure is estimated at over 90%.

After the procedure, you will receive all post-operative instructions. We remain available afterwards to answer any questions you may have.

Conclusion

If in doubt, do not hesitate to consult your podiatrist to explore treatment options for ingrown toenails, as well as for any other foot health-related conditions.

For more information or to make an appointment, you can call us at (438) 387-7700 .