Ingrown Toenails

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Ingrown toenails are a common condition in which the corner or side  of a toenail grows into the soft flesh. The result is pain, redness,  swelling and, sometimes, an infection. Ingrown toenails usually affect  your big toe.  Often you can take care of ingrown toenails on your own. If the pain  is severe or spreading, your doctor can take steps to relieve your  discomfort and help you avoid complications of ingrown toenails.

If you have diabetes or another condition that causes poor blood flow  to your feet, you're at greater risk of complications of ingrown  toenails.

Ingrown toenail symptoms include:

• Pain and tenderness in your toe along one or both sides of the nail
• Redness around your toenail
• Swelling of your toe around the nail
• Infection of the tissue around your toenail

When to see a doctor

See your doctor if you:

• Experience severe discomfort in your toe or pus or redness that seems to be spreading
• Have diabetes or another condition that causes poor blood flow to your feet and you experience any foot sore or infection

Common ingrown toenail causes include:

• Wearing shoes that crowd your toenails
• Cutting your toenails too short or not straight across
• Injuring your toenail
• Having unusually curved toenails

Left untreated or undetected, an ingrown toenail can infect the underlying bone and lead to a serious bone infection.

Complications can be especially severe if you have diabetes, which  can cause poor blood flow and damage nerves in your feet. So a minor  foot injury — a cut, scrape, corn, callus or ingrown toenail — may not  heal properly and become infected. A difficult-to-heal open sore (foot  ulcer) may require surgery to prevent the decay and death of tissue  (gangrene). Gangrene results from an interruption in blood flow to an  area of your body.

Your doctor will look at your toe to see if it’s ingrown. They may:

• Lift the nail. The doctor might lift the ingrown nail and put a splint under it to  relieve some pressure. When you get home, you’ll remove the splint, soak  the nail, and put the splint back.
• Cut away part of the nail. If the doctor has to do this, they’ll numb your toe with a shot first.
• Remove the whole nail and some tissue. If your ingrown nail keeps coming back, this might be an option. The  doctor will numb your toe first with a shot. They might remove the  section that’s ingrown or your whole toenail. They may have to destroy  the nail bed underneath the area so the nail doesn’t regrow or grows  back thinner.

Your doctor might also suggest:

• Antibiotics. You might need to take antibiotics in the form of a pill or as an ointment to put on your toe.
• More comfortable shoes. If your shoes put too much pressure on your toes, you could get an  ingrown toenail. Make sure you wear wide shoes that fit you and give  your toes lots of space to move around.
• A toe brace. This is a plastic or metal brace that goes over your toenail to relieve pain and pressure.

Sometimes an ingrown nail is caused by a fungus. A doctor can find out if you have a fungus and then offer treatment options.