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October 2022

Oct 31
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Ingrowing Toenails

Who Treats Ingrown Toenails & How To Go About Ingrowing Toenail Management

By Blog

Introduction

One of the most common issues we treat here at Bucksfoot Clinic is Ingrowing Toenail infections. It can be very difficult to carry on with ingrown toenail management on your own if you don’t know what to do, and this can turn into an infection. It can even lead to toenail fungus if not taken care of well.

We’re here to tell you everything you need to know about ingrown toenail infections. Read on to learn more.

What Is An Ingrown Toenail Infection?

Before we get into its symptoms, it would help to make it clear on exactly what an ingrown toenail infection is and how it’s caused.

Ingrown toenail infections occur when the corner tip or edge of your toenail pokes into the skin surrounding it, instead of freely growing outwards. The toe that’s most likely to suffer from this issue is your big toe, since it’s usually the one that’s most in contact with your footwear.

This condition is potentially very painful and can affect pretty much anyone, of all ages. Left untreated, an ingrown toenail infection can lead to other infections that may even spread into the underlying bone structure of your feet.

If you have a condition that reduces the blood flow to your feet, like diabetes and peripheral arterial disease, you’re more likely to suffer from an ingrown toenail. In fact, if you suffer from any of these conditions, your ingrown toenail can turn sour very quickly and lead to severe complications. This is why it’s important to know the symptoms early on and treat it accordingly.

Ingrown toenails are treatable at home, but at-home treatments can lead to complications if not carried out properly and hygienically. These complications will require immediate attention from a podiatrist or medical practitioner.

Ingrown Toenail Symptoms

Now that you know what an ingrown toenail is and why it’s important to know its symptoms early on, we can tell you what to look out for when self-diagnosing an ingrown toenail infection.
You may have an ingrown toenail infection if you have any of the following symptoms:

  • Swelling in the affected area
  • Pain when you touch the area
  • You feel pressure under your affected toenail
  • Throbbing sensations in the area
  • Foul smell coming from the affected area
  • Warmth in and around the infected area (this is your body’s way of telling you that you have an infection, while also fighting off said infection)
  • Hardened skin around affected nail, accompanies with redness
  • You may experience a build-up / ooze of fluid in the affected area
  • Your nail is thick, yellowing, or cracked. This is a key symptom of a fungal infection and must never be ignored
  • You may even develop an abscess that fills with pus, in the area where your nail has punctured your skin
  • The edges of your nail have an overgrowth of new and inflamed tissue

Just like any other medical issue, an ingrown toenail starts with minor symptoms that can later on become more serious if not tended to. You must always try to identify an issue when it’s in its budding stage so you can take care of it before it gets too serious.

Who Treats Ingrown Toenails?

 If you’ve ever wondered, “who treats ingrown toenails?”, we’ll clear up that doubt for you. The best person who treats ingrown toenails is a Podiatrist.

Lots of people still aren’t aware of what podiatrists do and still find themselves asking the question, “what is a Podiatrist?”.
A Podiatrist is a medical specialist that helps with problems related to your feet and lower legs. We can deal with health issues like diabetes complications and even treat minor and major injuries. People also call us Podiatric Physicians or Doctors of Podiatric Medicine, as well as Chiropodists.

Though a Podiatrist IS a doctors, they don’t go to traditional medical schools. There are separate schools and professional associations for Podiatrists. Doctors usually have an “MD” after their name, which stands for “Medical Doctor”. We have “DPM” at the end of our names. This stands for “Doctor of Podiatric Medicine”.
We can perform surgeries, reset broken bones, order lab tests or x-rays, and even rest broken bones. We’re completely licensed to do so, and we often work alongside other specialists that treat issues of the feet and lower legs.

Ingrowing Toenail Management

Another very important thing to take care of is ingrown toenail management. When you have an ingrown toenail, and you practice ingrown toenail management, you are generally safe from fungus and infection. Good foot care and hygiene are very important. Here’s how you can go about ingrown toenail management:

  • NEVER yank or pull on your nail! This can break the skin severely and lead to horrendous complications. You might be able to access your ingrown toenail by lifting your skin gently with a piece of floss. Just make sure to never force it open, and also ensure that your hands are sanitised and clean before you try to treat your ingrown toenail infection.
  • To drain the affected area of pus and to reduce your pain, you must fill a bucket with warm water and add epsom salt or coarse salt to it. Then, gently soak your foot in this solution so your skin softens around your ingrown toenail.
  • After softening your skin and draining it of any pus, you can put antibiotic / antifungal lotion or cream on the nail and the skin around and under it. Apply the cream directly.
  • If your pain is unbearable, you can take an over-the-counter (OTC) medicine to help with it. Apart from this, you can also take OTC medications to reduce the swelling and discomfort. If the pain truly is unbearable, though, we suggest seeing a podiatrist instead of jumping into OTC medications and trying to treat it on your own.

After you’ve tried all of the above, if your pain and infection persist after a few days, it’s advisable to visit a podiatrist. They’ll be able to lift and access the underpart of your nail much easier, so your topical antibiotics can be applied swiftly and can take effect better.

Conclusion

Now that you know some of the main things about ingrown toenail infections, it’ll be easier to identify an issue before it gets out of hand. Book an appointment with Buckfoot Clinic if you think you may be suffering from an ingrown toenail infection. Our podiatrists will be able to help you!

Please call us on  0800 107 3290 / 077 99 122 099 Or contact us now

Oct 04
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podiatrists

How To Treat A Corn & Other Answers From Our Podiatrists

By Blog

As Podiatrists, we get asked a lot of questions regarding foot care. A lot of our clients ask us about how to treat a corn and other issues at home. We also get asked questions like, “what’s the difference between a verruca and a corn?” and “is a corn serious?”.
So, we decided to put together a blog answering a few frequently asked questions about corns. If you want to learn more about corns and how to treat a corn, keep reading.

What Are Corns?

Corns are buildups of hardened areas of skin. They can form anywhere but tend to show up on feet, hands, and fingers the most. They are usually round and relatively small, and you’ll most likely see them develop on the sides and tops of your toes. There are three distinct types of corns:

  • Hard Corns: These are hard and dense, and usually form on the top of your toes, where your bones exert pressure on your skin. They usually reside within a bigger part of thickened skin.
  • Soft Corns: Usually whitish-grey in colour, with a slightly softer and rubbery texture, soft corns show up between your toes.
  • Seed Corns: As the name suggests, seed corns are quite small. They normally form at the bottom of your feet.

Corns usually develop due to constant rubbing, friction, pressure, and irritation against the skin. This is why you will most likely see them appear on the bony part of your feet. This hardening layer is actually your body’s defence to protect the softer skin underneath from the pressure.

How Do I Know If I Have A Corn?

Now that you know what a corn is, you’ll be easily able to identify it. You can identify a corn on your foot if:

  1. You have a hard bump on your skin, which is surrounded by a dry patch of skin.
  2. You have a tender and raised lump on your skin, that is painful to pressure.

Corns are often confused with calluses and verrucas (more on that later!). The main difference between corns and calluses is that corns are painful, while calluses are normally not painful. Corns have a central core that acts as a pressure point, which is the sensitive part the corn is protecting. So, when pressure is applied, corns tend to hurt.

Is A Corn Serious?

Corns are generally not a serious issue. They can be easy to deal with, but if you don’t treat them properly from the get-go, you could potentially develop an infection. That would make the issue a serious one. Especially if you have diabetes or any other circulation-related issues. You should never try to treat your corn (or any other issue, for that matter) on your own when you have diabetes.

What’s The Difference Between A Verruca And A Corn?

Oftentimes, people confuse corns for verrucas and vice-versa. Verrucas are a completely different issue altogether. There are a few key identifying factors when differentiating whether you have a verruca or corn. These are just a few of many:

  1. Verrucas are viruses (often called the Verruca Infection) caused by HPV. They are highly contagious (commonly seen when children with HFM Disease interact with other children on playgrounds). Corns, on the other hand (or foot!), are cone-shaped pieces of hard skin that form on areas of pressure. They are formed by friction and are not contagious.
  2. Verrucas aren’t picky. They see all feet as fit for infection. Corns, however, tend to form on dryer skin.
  3. Verrucas have a long incubation period that can range from a couple of months to a year. Corns tend to form over a long period of time from constant pressure and friction, while Verrucas seem to kind of just “show up” out of the blue.

If you want to know more about how to differentiate between verrucas and corns, we have a couple of blogs that might help:

    1. Verruca Or Corn?: Spot the Difference and Treat Your Verruca Infection with Care
    2. What’s The Difference Between A Verruca And A Corn?

How To Treat A Corn 

One of the most frequently asked questions about corns, is how to treat a corn. You’ll be happy to know that there are a few considerably painless methods a podiatrist will use to treat your corn. Here they are:

  • Trimming: Your podiatrist will most likely remove your corn by trimming it down using a tool. You can try doing this at home by soaking your feet for around 20 minutes in order to make the skin soft. Then, go ahead and gently scrape away at the rough skin using a pumice stone.
  • Chemical: This type of corn treatment for the foot is similar to trimming, but uses chemical products instead to slowly dissolve the affected skin. A common product used is salicylic acid, which dissolves keratin (what dead skin is made of).
  • Toe Protection /Footpads: Though not really a form of treatment, it’s worth mentioning. Using footpads can help ease the discomfort significantly. You can also use toe splints to prevent your toes from creating friction with each other.

A recommended at-home treatment is as follows:

  • Soak the corn in warm water, for 5-10 minutes till the skin softens
  • File the corn with a pumice stone. First, dip the stone in warm water then use it very gently against your corn. Make sure to use it in circular motions or sideways motions. This will remove the dead skin.
  • Don’t file it too much and take off too much skin, this can lead to bleeding and infections
  • Use moisturizer/lotion on the area daily. Preferably one with salicylic acid, urea, or ammonium lactate.
  • Use a piece of moleskin as padding. Cut the moleskin into two half-moon shapes and place it around the corn. To prevent your corn from constant shoe contact, use a doughnut-shaped adhesive pad to protect it.
  • Always wear shoes that fit you right.
  • Keep your toenails trimmed.

When Should I See A Podiatrist?

Corns can impact your day-to-day life due to pain while walking. Most corns are unproblematic, while some can become extremely painful or even infected. That’s why it’s always best to see a podiatrist when dealing with anything related to your feet.

Always see a podiatrist in case:

  • Your corn is painful.
  • If you suffer from diabetes, untreated corns can develop into worse illnesses.
  • If you cut your corn and it bleeds, the skin break allows infections to pour in.
  • Your corn is discharging pus or clear fluids. This means it’s either infected or has ulcers forming. Both of these require immediate medical care.
  • If you suffer from heart disease, or other circulatory problems (like diabetes).

Please call us on  0800 107 3290 / 077 99 122 099 Or contact us now

Call for an appointment 01494 434 366