How Do I Take Care of an Ingrown Toenail?

What to do when you have an ingrown toenail

Do you have a toe that is swollen and looks bruised? Do you feel a pounding pressure right under your toenail? If so, it sounds like you might have an ingrown toenail, a condition which may not get better on its own. You have an ingrown toenail because the corner or side of your toenail has grown into the soft tissue of your toe. Your podiatrists at Foot & Ankle Specialists of Nashville, Tennessee want you to know how to take care of your ingrown toenail.

Ingrown toenails can be caused by having curved toenails because they are more likely to grow into your tissue. Trauma or injury to your toenail can also result in your toenail growing into your tissue. There are a few things you should know about preventing an ingrown toenail, such as:

• Wearing supportive shoes with plenty of room for your toes
• Cutting your toenails straight across
• Leave toenails a little long, don’t cut them too short

Your podiatrists at Foot & Ankle Specialists of Nashville want you to know about some treatments you can try at home to relieve your pain from an ingrown toenail. You should try:

• Soaking your toe in warm water 3 times per day
• Cushioning your toe with cotton
• Placing dental floss underneath the ingrown part of your nail
• Taking over-the-counter pain medications like Tylenol, Advil or Aleve
• Applying antibiotic cream to the area and bandaging it
• Wearing open-toed shoes until your toe heals

If home treatments don’t make you feel better, stop in and see your podiatrists at Foot & Ankle Specialists of Nashville. They have many in-office treatments to help you such as:

• Lifting up your toenail from the surrounding skin which lets your toenail grow above the skin
• Trimming or removing the ingrown part of your toenail
• Removing your nail entirely, lessening the chance of another ingrown toenail

If you think you have an ingrown toenail, you don’t need to suffer when help is just a phone call away. Call your podiatrists at Foot & Ankle Specialists of Nashville, Tennessee and they can help you take care of your ingrown toenail and get you back on your feet.