Shorts are on, summer is on its way and we want you to enjoy the warm weather without worrying about your feet. A swollen, infected, pus-filled toenail doesn’t really go with the tanned legs and shorts look. If you have a beach holiday planned, you don’t want sand inside the cracked skin that often occurs with an ingrowing toenail.
Spring is the ideal time to have ingrown toenail surgery because you will have a large dressing on your toe for a couple of weeks afterwards. It will not fit inside a shoe or trainer; you will need a pair of flip flops or sliders to wear. After those first few weeks, your toe will quickly heal, and you’ll be proudly displaying them in the pub garden this summer.
Watch the video here. Our lead podiatrist Tom explains what an ingrowing toenail is and why it happens.
We know many people that go round and round this cycle-
- a painful spike of nail pushing up into the skin, causing lots of pain when walking and even stopping them from sleeping.
- pick out the spike with their fingernails or scissors, which can cause an infection.
- everything is ok for 2 months until the spike grows up and causes pain all over again.
People live with this cycle for years, picking at the spike because they can’t stand the excruciating pain that it is causing. As Tom says in the video, the leading cause of an ingrowing toenail is genetic, so don’t be embarrassed; it’s not something you’ve caused. It just needs sorting, and we are here to do that for you. You can regularly trim straight across your nail to keep the spike down, but this will not solve this issue. The only way to permanently solve the problem is to book in for surgery.
Most of us walk 10,000 steps a day on average, so that’s 5,000 moments of pain each and every day! Combine that with a disturbed night’s sleep; people have told us even the weight of the duvet laying over their toe is agony. So you can see why a simple ingrowing toenail has stopped people from going out or even moving around the house and makes them very grumpy!
Sportspeople, dancers, climbers and people into water sports need to wear tightly fitting shoes. Lots of pressure for balance, agility and speed goes directly through your big toe, which will then cause excruciating pain when combined with an ingrowing toenail. Ingrowing toenails are most common on the big toe and can occur on the other toes.
If your child has an ingrowing toenail, it is an investment to get their toenail fixed sooner rather than later, as once we’ve done the procedure, they won’t suffer from this again. Think about your child’s schedule for the 4 weeks after surgery as we recommend rest whilst their toe heals. Also, be ready to become their personal slave for a couple of days!
Tom, has been carrying out several ingrowing toenail surgeries every week for years; he has seen it all before and knows exactly what you’re going through. If you are worried, have questions, or want to talk the procedure through, use our free 15-minute consultation service.