An ingrown toenail is one where the edge or corner of your nail grows down and cuts into the adjacent skin of your toe, leading to your toe becoming red, swollen and tender (inflamed).

Your big toe is most likely to be affected, either on one or sometimes both sides. Your toenail curves and cuts into your skin causing your toe to be tender, especially when you walk on it.

If left untreated, the inflammation can spread to the rest of your toe and the area becomes infected and may ooze pus. It may smell unpleasant.

Initially the area around your affected toenail edge becomes hard, slightly swollen and tender.

There will be increasing tenderness and the area may get red and infected (caused by bacteria). At this stage the area may be very painful, with bleeding and oozing pus, and often smells unpleasant.

At this time the flesh next to the nail edge may start to bulge up into a moist swelling alongside the nail, which may start to grow over the ingrown toenail.

Complications

Bacterial Paronychia


Management Non-surgical

•     Warm water soaks
• Insert cotton-wick at lateral Nail Groove edge
• Silver nitrate to lateral nail granulation tissue
• Treat Paronychia with antibiotics if present

Management:

Surgical nail avulsion with cosmetic radiosurgery

Advantage:

The most recent advance in the permanent removal of ingrown nails comes from a unit called the Ellman Surgitron. It utilizes Radio Waves to permanently remove an ingrown nail. Electric current is converted into controlled energy in the form of Radio Wave Frequency of the electromagnetic spectrum. It uses a frequency of 3.8MHz. It is applied for 4 seconds to the nail matrix.

The advantage to this procedure is that it sterilizes the area while it is being used and results in less post operative pain and swelling. Infection rate is also decreased via this method offering a 98% success rate.

The main advantage of radiosurgery matrixectomy is:

•     Lack of use of carcinogenic chemical agen
• Sterilization of wound,
• Reduced post-operative pain
• Faster healing

Prevention

Trim nail flat and not too short