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Ingrown Toenails
An ingrowing toenail is where a piece of nail pierces the flesh of the toe. One of the most common causes is not cutting your toenails properly, such as cutting nails too low in order to relieve the pressure and discomfort of an involuted nail.
Tight footwear, hosiery and socks can also push your toe flesh onto the nail so that it pierces the skin. If you sweat excessively or don’t rotate your footwear, the skin becomes moist and weak and is easily penetrated by the nail. If you
How we can help
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For the most basic painful and irritable ingrowing toenail, the offending spike of nail will be removed and the toe covered with an antiseptic dressing
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For toes too painful to touch, a local anaesthetic will be injected before removing the offending portion of nail
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For those particularly prone to ingrowing toenails from underlying problems such as poor gait, a partial nail avulsion (PNA) may be recommended along with finding a more permanent solution to the underlying condition. This procedure is done under a local anaesthetic where part of the nail is removed (including the root), leaving a permanently narrower nail.
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In some cases a total nail avulsion (TNA) may be performed, where the entire nail plate and root are removed. In either case, the chemical phenol is used to cauterise the nail and prevent it regrowing. This is over 95% successful.
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Nail bracing is offered to those who prefer not to have surgery. The application of a brace train the nail to grow out straight and is less likely to grow into the sides.