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Last Updated: Feb 05, 2020
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Causes of Ingrown Toe Nails!

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Dr. Shaurya RohatgiDermatologist • 15 Years Exp.MBBS, MD - Dermatology , Venereology & Leprosy
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Ingrown toenails have become a common trouble these days and there are many causes that are responsible for the same. Nail edges or corners mostly get affected by this trouble. It often appears to be a toenail infection while it is not so. Bigger toes are highly prone to this toenail issue; therefore you need to be very careful.

Before the issue can become serious, you should take careful steps to prevent the same. Medical advice is required so that the right treatment can be chosen, which gives you an instant relief from the symptoms. The skin around the nail becomes tender and might get swollen or hard coupled with a lot of pain in the toe.

Leading causes for ingrown toenails:

  1. Incorrect nail-cutting: If you make a mistake in cutting your toenail correctly, then you might face the situation of an ingrown toenail. Therefore, you should always finely concentrate while cutting your toenails with the help of any nail cutter. In most of the cases, curved or irregular nails are to be cut with great care.
  2. Wrong footwear: If you have chosen the wrong footwear, which create tremendous amount of pressure on your feet, it may develop this kind of nail condition. Only repeated or consistent usage of these kinds of footwear can develop this horrible situation. Sometimes, extremely tight stockings or socks can also be responsible for ingrown toenails.
  3. Improper hygiene: Acute foot hygiene needs to be maintained without any fail otherwise you will not be able to prevent ingrown nails. You should always keep your feet clean and dry. If your feet remain in contact with moisture for a long time, then this condition might arise. You can now use specialized solutions available in the market for washing the nails on your feet.
  4. Toenail injury: If you have any injury on your toenail, then it needs to be corrected as soon as possible otherwise the injury will get converted into ingrown nails. Which further results in acute painful sensations and these kinds of experiences are simply unbearable. Poor posture can bring injuries to your toenails. If you have any existing toe injuries, then you should try your level best for the speedy recovery of the same.
  5. Poor health-conditions: There are many health conditions, which result in ingrown toenails out of which diabetes is the most prominent one. Due to poor blood circulation, the nails on your feet get damaged internally resulting in ingrown nails.

Treatment

Ingrown toenails can be treated by partial nail avulsion with chemical cauterization. Nail avulsion is the most common surgical method performed in the toenails. A partial or complete nail avulsion can be performed, depending upon the location and the extent of the problem. In partial nail avulsion, only a part of the nail is removed from the nail bed. On the other hand, in complete nail avulsion, all of the nail is removed from the nail bed.

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult a specialist & get answers to your questions!
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