Toenail fungus is a common infection and can cause the nail to thicken and discolor. Learn from podiatrist Dr. Melody Chong how nail fungus happens and how it can be treated.

Transcript

I’m Dr. Melody Chong. I’m a podiatrist. I treat ankle, foot, and leg issues. I'm located at 3838 California Street and I've been in practice for over 25 years.

Another very common problem is a fungus in the nail. Basically, it gets between the nail and under the nail, causing the nail to get thicker and grow abnormally, including a curved toenail, which we call an ingrown toenail.

So basically the nail changes color. It might have a bad smell. Again, it can get thicker and cause the nail to grow curved and lift off and get very painful.

So how does the nail get this way? Usually, it's from damage from injury, such as poor shoes causing pressure onto the nail. It's also very common in those who are older, in those with health problems like diabetes, and in anybody with poor circulation, athlete’s foot, and sweaty feet. Those are very common causes of the nail becoming odd-looking.

Why should you treat this funny-looking nail? 

Well, usually patients want it taken care of because they don't like the way it looks. Also, a very practical reason is pain relief because sometimes the fungus toenails can get painful and curved. If you just leave it alone and don't do any treatment, what can happen? As I mentioned, you can feel pain if you haven’t already. You might get redness from the toenail itself because it's pushing up on the underlying toe. Also, you can get redness at the end of the bone underneath the toe.

It decreases the chance of getting another kind of infection, such as a bacterial infection, and it can prevent the nail from getting injured. That means it can prevent the nail from falling off or getting pulled off.

It should be treated in patients with diabetes. It should be treated in patients with a nerve condition because they often have no feeling in their feet. It should also be treated in patients with poor circulation. This is to prevent more problems like a bacterial infection or further injury.

So how should we treat this?

The main way to treat this is by shortening the nails and thinning them. Also, there are medications that one can either apply to the nail or take orally. This is treated to prevent the spreading of the fungus to the other nails if not all the nails have fungus in them. Some other treatments include temporarily removing the nail or permanently removing the nail.

Here are some diagrams of the toenail fungus:

This is how it looks in the beginning.

This is how it looks over time. It is very challenging to get rid of. It's a long process.

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Related Links:

• About Melody Chong, D.P.M.

• Health Education Topics