Ingrown toenails are a painful condition that occurs by either trauma, pressure, or heredity. There a numerous amount of at-home treatment options for ingrown nails. Non-surgical treatments may take weeks to months of consistent reapplication to see meaningful results.
Here are a few pain-relieving techniques for ingrown nails:
- Cotton wick: Use a small piece of the cotton wick to elevate the edge of the toenail. This is done so that part of the nail would no longer dig into the skin surrounding the nail. You can repeat this procedure twice daily or until the cotton naturally falls out after a week.
- Dental floss: Use a string of floss to lift the nail and separate the nail from the bed similarly to the cotton wick technique. This piece of floss can be left until it falls or the nail grows out long enough.
- Gutter splint: Use a split plastic tube to insert under the nail so it is lifted above the nail bed similarly to a mini leg split, it holds the nail in the correct direction of growth. This procedure is commonly done with anesthesia as well.
- Taping: Use elastic tape and retape at most every week, taping the toe specifically so the nail is being pulled away from the ingrown.
- Angle Correction: Filing down the thickness of the nail every two months to reduce pressure which can then be followed with reshaping the edge of the nail.
- Brace Technique: Using a brace to pull the edge of the ingrown away from the tissue.
However, chronic conditions cannot be fixed at home. If these techniques do not help to fix the condition, ingrown toenail surgery is a good option. This procedure permanently removes the ingrown toenail, preventing it from growing back.
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