Ingrown Toenails And Nail Maintenance
Ingrown toenails are often very painful, red, swollen and infected.
They can develop from poor nail care, altered nail shape, trauma to the toe or tight fitting shoes. Ingrown toenails will generally get worse with time, until the offending piece of nail is removed to decrease pressure on the skin. They can occur on any nail, it doesn’t have to be the big toe.
When to seek treatment
- Ideally as soon as you have any tenderness/discomfort around the toenail
- If you have been cutting your nails and following that your toe is sore
- Any redness or pus around the toenail (indicating infection)
- If you have been on antibiotics and it settled, but it flared up again once you’d finished the antibiotics.
How we can help
If we can manage your ingrown toenail conservatively, we will. If we are not successful with conservative treatment we will recommend surgical intervention. Toenail surgery is a minor, very straightforward procedure regularly performed at Hobsonville Podiatry. If we consider surgery a necessary step we will discuss this with you thoroughly prior and ensure you are well aware of what to expect. We will never perform a nail surgery during the initial appointment.