Ingrowing toenail

[Chickadee]

Have got an ingrowing toenail on my right bigtoe and my god does it hurt!!
Have had this problem for a long time and can normally resolve it myself but this time the nail does not want to come out.
Have got docs appt (in a fortnights time!!) but does anyone have any suggestions on how to ease the pain until then?
Thanks for any help.

[LoftyLottie]

As recommended by my GP and also a method used by chiropodists:

Take a very small piece of cotton wool. Compress it and push it with an orange stick down under the nail where it is ingrowing. It will hurt when you do it, but it will push the nail up slightly and train it to grow that way. You can leave it in, but it will obviously need replacing if your toe is infected in any way and oozing puss.

[LoftyLottie]

http://www.emedicinehealth.com/ingrown_toenail s/page6_em.htm

[mrs_overall]

if you are struggling to push a piece of cotton wool in (as per lotties escellent advice) you could try using a piece of dental floss to lift the corner.

[fideldyfee]

Is there no way you can get an appointment sooner? I know it doesnt sound like an emergency but even if you could try and get a cancellation? I used to get these this all the time and nothing helped for me except the tablets the doctor gives you.
Hope you're ok and not in too much pain.

[LoftyLottie]

I wish someone had given me that advice years ago Mrs O. I suffered so much as a child with ingrown toenails. One of my children does now, but he was given this information by our doctor and he does this as soon as he feels the slightest discomfort and it never gets worse

[MORELLO]

Go and see a Podiatrist/Chiropodist. Your GP can only give you antibiotics which may reduce infection and inflammation but will not resolve the problem with your nail. As a Podiatrist myself I would strongly advise against pushing anything under the nail, as you are likely to complcate the condition. You will probably need part of the nail taking away under local anaesthetic, which is a simple procedure and will hopefully resolve the problem for good. Contact your local health centre who will undoubtedly have a Chiropody service who can perform this for you. Good luck.

[4getmenot]

cut a small V in top of nail

[Barquentine]

You need to cut a v-shape at the top in the middle which encourages the nail to grow inwards to fill up the V. It won't do anything to alleviate the nail already growing under the skin though. I imagine that till now you've been able to cut out most of what was growing into the side, but now it's gone too far in. I had my toe-nail off 4 or 5 times as a kid. Once they started before the local anaesthetic had started to work (maybe I shouldn't be telling you this!). They eventually developed a new technique whereby they cut off just the sides of the toe-nail (leaving the central section)and killed the side roots so my left big toe nail only grows in its central section - looks pretty normal though.

[LoftyLottie]

My GP actually did the necessary operation on my nail Morello. It depends on the GP surgery and the GP. And I wouldn't give advice like this if it had not been given to me by my GP and a qualified chiropodist, and as confirmed under 'home treatment' on my link.

[4getmenot]

Just takes pressure off the sides, i you cant cut then file it so it thinner

[mimi-moomoo]

i found that cutting a v is not only painful with an ingrown toenail, its also useless and caused the other side of my nail to ingrow. thats all i really needed to say, i waited to go to the doctors and the day before i stubbed my bad toe on the door. haha after that all i needed the doctors for was a lot of pain relief and a bandage.

[zzxxee]

go straight to a and e in your local hospital and lay it on thick about how you cant walk ect and you should get it sorted a s a p

[LoftyLottie]

I did that once and I waited 5 hrs. (Boxing Day). They gave me antibiotics,advised me to take paracetamol and see my doctor after the Christmas break!!

[Chickadee]

Thanks for all the suggestions guys.

Unfortunately, my hubby tried to assist (bless him) and now the nail is quite low and I won't be able to push anything under it. I am such a coward!!

I think I'll try for cancellations over the next few days.

[MORELLO]

That's OK Lofty, but as a Podiatrist who deals with these things daily, I stand by what I advise - don't push anything under the nail and make a visit to a Podiatrist/Chiropodist your first port of call.