An ingrown toenail usually occurs for one of two reasons. You may have trimmed your nail in such a way that it started growing into the surrounding skin. Or you may have worn shoe that were too tight and it squeezed your toes together, pushing your nail into the skin.

The pain from an ingrown nail can be pretty intense! The good new though is that an ingrown nail can be solved with minimum pain and discomfort. However anyone, with diabetes or vascular disease in particular should get medicinal treatment for ingrown nail. Without proper medical treatment for those with diabetes or vascular disease the ingrown nail could worsen quickly and bring on other complication it is important that you go to a health-care professional who is trained in nail care.

If you have an ingrown toe nail, you should start treating it as soon as possible to prevent it from becoming infected.

Suggestions on taking care of your ingrown toenail.

1.Clean tools you will need, a rounded toothpick, tweeters and a small piece of cotton.

2.Add one to two tablespoon of salt or Epson salt to a quart of lukewarm water. Soak your feet for 15 to 20 minutes. This softens the nail and the skin around it. It also helps fight infection.

3.With a rounded toothpick, carefully lift the edge of the ingrown toenail as much as you can tolerate. Then slide a small piece of clean gauze or cotton under the nail where it is digging into your skin. This will encourage the nail to grow out and over the gauze or cotton. If you are unable to do this step, see your doctor.

4.Soak your foot and change the gauze or cotton every day until your nail heals


While your toe is on the mend, keep it uncovered as much as possible. Take off your shoes and socks when you’re at home, and wear sandals when you can. Also don’t bandage your toes. If you notice any redness, or swelling after a couple of days, see your doctor.

Tips to avoid ingrown nails

No curved toenails. Get in the habit of cutting them straight across. You can file the corners if they are sharp.

Don’t cut nails too short. When we stand up, pressure pushes the skin up in front of the toenail. As the nail grows forward, it imbeds into the skin. So it is best to cut the nail to the end of the skin, rather than below the end of the toes.

If you get an infection from the ingrown nail where white sock, you can make the infection worse by wearing colored socks. Some people are allergic or can be sensitive to dyes. If the dye from the color socks gets into the infected nail, it could cause further complications

An ingrown toenail may be nature’s way of telling you, that it is time for a new pair of shoes


This information is for informational purpose only and is not intended to replace the care or advice of a physician.