When Your Feet Are Killing You, Consider Ingrown Toenail Surgery
How many times have you experienced the adage about your feet killing you even when you are barefoot
? Well, if you have experienced it one too many times, then you might just have a physical condition that necessitates an ingrown toenail surgery.
Instead of going to your favorite nail salon expert, you might want to see your doctor for effective treatment to get rid of your toenail. Not your toes - just your ingrown toenail killing you with its sharpness, even if it is only in the figurative sense.
Complications that Will Not Grow on you
What exactly is an ingrown toenail? Simply put, it is the condition where one side of your toenail grows into the soft flesh of that particular toe. In most instances, it is the big toe that suffers from this condition although the little toes are not spared, too. The symptoms range from pain, redness and swelling of the affected area, which can lead to severe infections when left untreated.
The most effective treatment is ingrown toenail surgery. The complications of an ingrown toenail are not things that will grow on you. For example, if you have diabetes, you have a greater risk for developing foot ulcers and gangrene as well as severe bone infection. If that sounds scary, then you should take action to treat your ingrown toenail today.
Your Non-Surgical Options
If your ingrown toenail is not severe, it can usually be managed without surgery. There are many non-surgical options that include:
1. Placement of cotton under the nail to help it grow above the skin instead of into it.
2. Use of oral and topical antibiotics to treat infections.
3. Regular pedicures can help, too.
However, these methods are often only temporary and, hence, ingrown toenail surgery should be considered.
Surgery to Keep your Toe Alive
Your doctor will choose from two types of surgery for an ingrown toenail. First, the side of the offending toenail is removed along with the nail bed and root to prevent its re-growth. Usually, your doctor will use either a chemical or an electric current to achieve the purpose. Second, the entire side of the nail plate as well as the root and bed are surgically removed. This is the most successful surgery for treatment of ingrown toenail although it can also be more expensive than partial removal.
In both cases, a local anesthetic is administered to eliminate the pain during surgery. You also need not stay in the hospital as ingrown toenail surgery is done on an outpatient basis. Just make sure that you have adequate home support as you may not be able to get back on your feet on the same day as the operation.
After Surgery
You should be able to walk normally a few days after the surgery. While the wound heals, you should bathe your foot in warm salt water for 15 minutes at a time, two times daily. If surgical excision was performed, your sutures will be removed in two weeks' time. For athletes, it is possible to return to sports in 2-4 weeks. For ordinary individuals, regular shoes can be worn in less time.
Truly, when your feet are killing you, seeking medical opinion as to the possibility of ingrown toenail surgery is the logical thing to do.
by: Andrew Long
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