The feet support the weight of the body and cushion against impact during strenuous activities. The feet work with the leg to impart mobility. Pain in the feet, specifically the toe, may significantly impede mobility. Ingrown toenails cause significant discomfort and may develop into severe foot complications. Las Vegas ingrown toenail home remedies may not suffice for advanced conditions; fortunately, podiatrists use state-of-the-art technology to treat this condition. This article delves into the potential home and hospital remedies to ingrown toenails.
Causes of Ingrown Toenails
Before looking into treatment options for ingrown toenails, it is essential to understand their causes.
- Heredity – Most people inherit the tendency to grow ingrown toenails from both parents.
- Trauma – Occasionally, stubbing your foot into furniture edges and prolonged pressure cause ingrown toenails to develop.
- Improper Nail Clipping – When you use the wrong nail cutter to trim your nails, it may result in uneven trimming. Unevenly clipped nails cause the skin to fold over the nails and consequently develop ingrown toenails.
- Poor blood circulation – Decreased arterial circulation causes backflow of blood and makes you susceptible to ingrown toenails.
Remedies to Ingrown Toenails
- Remove it yourself
If there’s no localized infection, you can remove the painful nail. First, soak your toe in warm water with Epsom salt. Epsom salt softens the surrounding skin and removes dead skin cells to expose the ingrown toenail. Sterilize your clippers and cut across your nail evenly. Apply antibiotic ointment after the procedure. Self-removal is a conventional home remedy for ingrown toenails and is practical where the toenail is visible and does not cause intense pain.
- Matrixectomy
Matrixectomy is a permanent solution to curb repeated growth of toenails. During a matrixectomy, the doctor will numb your toe with an anesthetic and place a tourniquet around it. The doctor will then remove the growth plate together with the ingrown toenail. The podiatrist will then apply iodine or similar chemical treatment to eliminate recurrent growth in the neighboring tissues. Matrixectomy does not involve any incisions, and you can walk out in regular footwear 15 minutes after the procedure.
- Over the Counter Medication
Acetaminophen and Ibuprofen significantly reduce pain, and you can use them to cure inflammation on the ingrown toenail. You can also put antibiotic cream around your toe and wrap it in a cotton swab to encourage the growth of the nail above the skin.
- Wearing Toe Braces
Recurrent toenail growth may necessitate implanting toe braces. Toe braces are brackets that go over your toe to alleviate pain and pressure while spacing your toes. Adequate spacing prevents the transfer of infection to healthy nails. Toe braces are inexpensive and offer long-term pain relief to ingrown toenails. Computed cone-beam Technology at Battle Bone center in Las Vegas determines the right toe brace for your toenail before placing it on the toe.
5. Wearing Fitting Footwear
Subtle causes of ingrown toenails such as wearing ill-fitting shoes cause severe infection to your toes. Wearing fitting shoes provides space for air circulation and reduces friction on the nails. Open footwear lowers pain arising from inflammation on the ingrown toenails. You can add cushion pads to your shoes for better comfort.
Conclusion
Ingrown toenails inconvenience you by causing immense pain. Renowned podiatrists use specialized treatment options to cure wounds and infections on curved toenails. If the home remedies do not work, this article provides you with alternative medical options you can consider to fix ingrown toenails.