What can cause an ingrown toenail?
There is often a combination of causes but can include: tight fitting shoes, cutting nails too short, cutting nails down the side rather than straight across, stubbing your toe, picking at the corner of toenails, sweaty feet, or toenail shape.
How to manage an ingrown toenail?
When left untreated, they can also become infected. If you think you may be developing a painful ingrown nail, see a Podiatrist as soon as you can.
Most ingrown toenails can be fixed conservatively during a general foot care appointment. The Podiatrist will file down the side of the nail simple, remove any nail spike and use a foam padding between the nail and the skin to prevent the nail from piercing the skin as it regrows. Your podiatrist will also give you advice about how to care for this at home.
Nails that are painful, swollen, or infected require a simple nail surgery to correct the nail and prevent it from causing future problems. This is a permanent solution for problematic ingrown nails. The surgery is completed in a sterile surgery room by our experienced podiatrists. You will be in the clinic for one hour while the procedure is completed under local anaesthetic. We perform these simple surgeries every day. The patient will be able to walk away from the appointment.
What happens during a nail surgery?
The podiatry term for “Nail Surgery” is a “Partial Nail Avulsion” This simply means that a small slice of the side of the painful toe is surgically removed under local anaesthetic. Often the patient will choose to have more than one edge removed at the same time.
Occasionally, a patient’s nail is so damaged they will require a full nail removal. A similar technique is used involving local anaesthetic in a sterile environment at the clinic.
Our podiatrists regularly complete these straightforward surgeries to fix an ingrown nail and prevent this problem from recurring.
The appointment is scheduled for an hour at the Melbourne Foot Clinic in a sterile environment. Local anaesthetic is used to numb the toe. The podiatrist will clear and clean the offending part of the nail. A chemical is applied to prevent nail regrowth in the same area. Your podiatrist will dress the toe with a sterile dressing and bandage.
You will be provided with a dressing pack to take home along with instructions to change the dressings. You will be able to walk out of the clinic after the surgery. We will make a review appointment for you in approximately ten days and continue to review your toe until it has healed. All review appointments and dressing are included in the fee for surgery.
Ingrown toenails are best treated early to avoid the need for surgery.
Local Melbourne suburbs we service
With a priority on keeping people healthy, Melbourne Foot Clinic provides a wide range of professional services for people across Melbourne’s East. Our patients travel from all over Victoria to see us at our foot clinic in Mont Albert, with most coming from the following locations:
Mont Albert Podiatrist
Mont Albert Podiatrist Near Box Hill
We use cutting edge technology and offer excellent services to many residents of Box Hill.
Mont Albert Podiatrist Near Surrey Hills
Our podiatrists are experts in providing biomechanics, orthotics, and foot pain for patients from Surrey Hills.
Mont Albert Podiatrist Near Camberwell
Our podiatrists are specialists in treating clients’ problems across Camberwell and Melbourne’s East.
Mont Albert Podiatrist Near Balwyn
Reputable podiatrists servicing the residents of Balwyn with outstanding results for years.
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