Ingrown toenails can be a painful, unsightly and scary condition. The good news is that with early intervention we can fix and even cure them without surgical intervention.

Mild ingrowing nails:

To prevent mild ingrown toenails from returning, it is important to keep the toenails trimmed straight across and not too short, not to tear the nails, to wear properly fitted footwear when doing higher impact activities. It is also important to keep the feet clean and dry to prevent infection.

Moderate to severe ingrowing nails:
If the nail is badly ingrown, it can still be fixed permanently through a surgical procedure called a total or partial nail avulsion with or without phenolisation.

Partial Nail Avulsion Surgery with or without phenolisation:

During this procedure; the part of the toenail that is causing the issue is removed. If required, we then phenolise the nail bed so that the offending section of nail never grows back to give you further issues. This procedure can be performed by a podiatrist in a clinic.
After the phenolisation procedure, the section of the toenail that we’ve surgically removed will not grow back so cannot become ingrown again.
If the nail is not phenolised, then the nail will grow back and needs to be carefully maintained to prevent further infection or ingrowing.

See below a diagram of a partial nail avulsion.

Total Nail Avulsion Surgery:

This procedure is performed when the nail is severely deformed and causing major issues. The whole is surgically removed. If required, we then phenolise the nail bed so that the offending section of nail never grows back to give you further issues. This procedure can be performed by a podiatrist in a clinic.
After the phenolisation procedure, the toenail that we’ve surgically removed will not grow back so cannot become ingrown again.

If you are experiencing red or sore skin around your toenails, or an ingrown toenail and are unsure of how to properly care for it, it is recommended that you consult with a podiatrist for proper treatment and advice as soon as possible.

If treated early enough, we can often avoid the need for toenail surgery.