All About Those Pesky Ingrown Nails

Bring your sore toes to Klamath Falls Foot & Ankle, LLC

Ingrown nails are essentially a battle for real estate on your toe.  The nail fold, or skin adjacent to your nail, and the actual nail itself want to occupy the same location.  The fight for this area is sometimes exacerbated when we cut our nails and leave a jagged edge in the corner of the nail.  Oftentimes we are able to relieve the symptoms by cutting the jagged edge of the corner of the nail to relieve pain. 

However, when a person develops an ingrown nail multiple times, the first questions to ask are, "Am I cutting the nail properly?" and "Do I allow the edge of the nail to grow out past the nail fold, or do I cut the nail deep into the corner?" The second thought to consider is, "Perhaps I should have the painful portion of the nail removed permanently so the ingrown nail never causes pain again." With the use of a chemical to eradicate the root of the nail, there is almost no chance that the painful border will ever grow back. The procedure takes about 30 minutes and is done in our office. If you happen to suffer from recurrent ingrown toenails, we look forward to serving you and freeing you from this pesky, painful problem! ​​
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-Jeff Merrill, DPM, FACFAS ​

Graphic credit: http://theawkwardyeti.com/comic/ingrown-nail/