Treating Ingrown Toenails In Santa Maria, CA
It’s important to take care of your toenails and keep them trim and cleaned, but sometimes when you cut your nails improperly and leave edges that can curl into the sides of the toe and cause ingrown toenails to grow. Ingrown toenails can cause you pain and can cause other issues to happen. Foot & Ankle Center of The Central Coast can help answer any questions you may have about ingrown toenails and how you can treat them.
Signs and Symptoms of an Ingrown Toenail
When you wear shoes that are too tight, you stub your toe, or cut your nails too short, it can cause ingrown toenails to form and there are signs that you should be on the lookout to treat your ingrown toenail as soon as possible.
You may have an ingrown toenail if you:
- Pain or tenderness on one or both sides of the toenail
- Feel throbbing and pressure under your toenail
- Redness around the toenail
- Swelling around the toenail
- Infection of the tissue around your toenail.
- Notice your toe getting dark and looking bruised
- See fluid, blood, or pus coming out from under your toenail
Causes of Ingrown Toenails
Ingrown toenails can be caused by a wide variety of factors, including:
- Trauma or an injury to your toenail
- Cutting your toenails too short
- Rounding the ends of your toenails
- Have toenails that curve under naturally
- Wearing narrow shoes that crush your toes together
Ways To Prevent Ingrown Toenails
You can do a lot to prevent ingrown toenails. Remember to:
- Cut your toenails straight across
- Don’t cut your toenails too short
- Wear comfortable, protective shoes to avoid a toe injury
- Wear wider shoes with enough room for your toes
What You Can Do About an Ingrown Toenail
Your doctor may recommend some at-home remedies for you to try to reduce any pain or infection you may be experiencing. You can try a few simple tips to treat an ingrown toenail. Consider:
- Soaking your toes in warm water daily
- Trying to gently lift your toenail up off the surrounding skin
- Placing a small piece of dental floss under your toenail to try to lift it up
- Cushioning your toes with bandages or cotton
- Wearing comfortable shoes or sandals until your ingrown toenail heals
- Take ibuprofen or acetaminophen to help relieve pain
Professional Treatments for Ingrown Toenails
If your ingrown toenail doesn’t begin to heal in a few days, it’s important to follow up with your doctor and look into other treatment options. Your doctor may need to remove part of the toenail to help the nail grow back properly.
Your podiatrist has several options to heal an ingrown toenail, including:
- Lifting and separating your toenail from the skin around it
- Trimming off the ingrown part of your toenail
- Removing the entire toenail so a healthy new toenail can grow