What are ingrown toenails?
What are ingrown toenails?
An ingrown toenail can be a painful condition where the side of the nail irritates the surrounding skin. This may cause redness, and swelling, and in some cases can pierce the skin resulting in infection. It more commonly affects the big toenail, but can also affect one side or both sides of the nails. Extra skin can be present on the affected side of the toe due to irritation and infection of the skin. If you don’t get it treated then the surrounding skin can get infected and the infection could spread.
What causes ingrown toenails?
Cutting down the side of the nail and leaving behind a piece of nail. To avoid this make sure you cut your nails straight across.
Wearing shoes that are too narrow, tight, or small
Excessive sweating
Poor foot hygiene
Damage to the toenails
Treatment for ingrown toenails: If you think you have an ingrown toenail you should see your podiatrist as soon as possible.
The podiatrist can:
Ingrown Toenail Surgery - remove the portion of nail that is causing pain to provide relief and prevent infection
Consider conservative management such as nail bracing if suitable
Determine the cause of the ingrown toenail (such as tight shoes or infection) and give you advice on what to do.
Permanently remove part or whole of the nail so you don’t get another ingrown toenail.
We treat feet from all over Sydney, particularly the Eastern Suburbs. As podiatrists in Bondi Junction, we are happy to treat anyone that comes to our Sydney clinic. Our local area includes Bondi Junction, Bondi, Bondi Beach, North Bondi, Rose Bay, Tamarama, Coogee, Randwick, Bellevue Hill, Dover Heights, Vaucluse, and Edgecliff.
