Ingrown Nail, How To Treat With Folk Remedies

Many people face a problem called an ingrown toenail. Such a nail grows directly into the skin. Most often, a similar problem appears on one side of the nail. But it also happens that the nail grows from both sides at the same time.

Many people face a problem called an ingrown toenail. Such a nail grows directly into the skin. Most often, a similar problem appears on one side of the nail. But it also happens that the nail grows from both sides at the same time. What shall I do? At the same time, a person feels severe pain when pressing on the affected finger, part of which becomes inflamed, redness appears on it.

In medicine, the disease of an ingrown nail is called onychocroptosis. If it happened that you faced such a problem, then you need to urgently start fighting it. Onychocroptosis mainly affects the big toes, but there are exceptions in which the ingrown toenail affects the tissues of other toes as well.

So, let's consider the signs of an ingrown nail. We found out everything about this unpleasant disease. The first and most important symptoms are the redness of the finger and the pain that occurs when pressing on it. As soon as you notice the listed symptoms, you should start treatment immediately. If you do not start treatment on time, there is a risk that the disease will begin to progress, purulent discharge will soon appear, and it will be difficult for you to walk due to severe pain.

Causes of nail ingrowth

Doctors long ago studied the reason why the nail grows. They are sure that its essence lies in the hereditary factor. That is, the problem is transmitted from parents to children. But this does not mean that it cannot be solved. In most cases, it is quite possible to cure such a disease as an ingrown toenail. You just have to carefully monitor the health of your toenails. Pedicure should be done more carefully. It is especially necessary to try to cut the nails more deeply at the edges. Another cause of nail ingrowth is narrow shoes, wearing which leads to compression of the leg and, accordingly, the nail.

How to treat an ingrown nail without pain? Now we will find out. Those who want to get rid of the problem of an ingrown toenail should not postpone treatment for later, thinking that the problem will resolve itself. There are several options for her decision. When choosing the best option, you should focus on the one that will suit your situation. For the correct choice of the method, it is necessary to assess the degree of development of the disease.

Stages of nail growth

The first stage: a person feels pain while walking.

The second stage: swelling of the soft tissues of the nail is clearly visible. In addition, the nail may bleed, pus protrudes from it. Such a stage is dangerous because there is a risk of introducing an infection. And this fact will worsen the course of the disease even more.

Third stage: The final stage, when the inflamed tissue causes gangrene or sepsis.

In the second and third stages of ingrowth, you will not be able to cure an ingrown nail using preventive methods. Here it is necessary to resort to the use of more effective means.

If the ingrown toenail is at an initial stage, then you have every chance to heal with the help of ordinary foot baths. Preparing such a bath will not be difficult. You just need to heat the water and add a weak solution of potassium permanganate and baking soda. After the mixture dissolves in the water, you should place the sore finger in the water and keep it there for at least 15 minutes. To achieve the best result, doctors recommend taking such baths 3 times a day. With the help of foot baths, you can achieve softening of the nail. As soon as it softens well, you can try to cut it. The procedure should be repeated until the diseased nail is completely cut off.

You should know that folk treatment of an ingrown toenail is possible only if the symptoms are mild.

If the disease is at the stage when pus is already visible, baths will not help. Here you have to go to the pharmacy and buy Vishnevsky ointment. Such an ointment is designed to relieve inflammation and prevent the development of infection on the skin. It is best to apply the ointment as follows: you need to take a bandage, roll it in several layers, apply a little ointment. Now you should apply the ointment to the sore finger, it should be bandaged on top and left for the night. Such procedures should be carried out until the pus disappears. As soon as the pus is no longer visible, you can try to take several baths with potassium permanganate and soda, which we wrote about above.

In that case, if you do not have a special ointment for the treatment of an ingrown nail, demyxide and ordinary water will do. You need to take these components in a ratio of 1:5 and mix well. After that, the resulting mixture should be applied to the sore finger. It is best to carry out the treatment procedure with this mixture 2 times a day. If possible, apply the medicine to the sick nail and walk like that throughout the day.

Streptocide and hydrogen peroxide will be a good alternative to Vishnevsky ointment. They are applied to the damaged area and washed off with water after an hour.

How can you cure an ingrown toenail with folk remedies? Folk medicine also knows the secrets of treating an ingrown toenail at home. For example, an ordinary plant - aloe, will help you solve this painful problem. Many people have this plant at home, but they do not use it to treat diseases. And in vain. With an ingrown nail, there is an option to use a peeled aloe leaf. It should be applied to the sore finger and fixed with a bandage. It is better to carry out this procedure at night. Already in the morning, you will feel that the pain has subsided, and the inflammation has passed. With the help of aloe leaves, you can cure an ingrown toenail quickly, painlessly and for free. After the pain and inflammation have passed, start taking baths. And only then you can cut the nail so that in the future it does not grow into the soft tissues of the finger.

Folk medicine advises treating an ingrown toenail with ordinary cow's oil. It is necessary to take an awl, put oil in it and put it on the toe. Such a procedure is best carried out at night. After a couple of weeks, the nail will soften. Then you should proceed to the next procedure, the essence of which is to raise the corner of the ingrown nail and place a piece of gauze or a bandage under it. Thus, the inflammation will gradually pass, and you will no longer feel pain. As for the ingrown nail itself, it can be carefully cut.

Chamomile decoction is considered an effective treatment for ingrown toenails. You can prepare it if you take 5 tbsp. l. dry chamomile and mix with 1.5 liters of water. From time to time, a chamomile foot bath should be held for about 15 minutes several times a week.

Baths with sea salt

It is necessary to pour about 10 liters of hot water into a bowl, pour 5-6 tbsp. l. of sea salt, stir the salt so that it is completely dissolved. The foot with the sore toe should be placed in the resulting solution and kept for about 10 minutes until the water cools down. After finishing the bath, you can try to cut off the ingrown part of the nail with manicure scissors. It is recommended to take salt baths several times a day until you feel that the pain has subsided and the ingrown nail no longer bothers you.

Cabbage compresses

Take a couple of cabbage leaves, grind them to make porridge. It is you who should apply it to the sore spot, and then fix it well by wrapping it around the leg. The juice secreted by cabbage will act as an excellent antiseptic that will draw out pus and reduce pain. As in all previous recipes, the procedure is better to be carried out in the evening, and then in the morning you will have the opportunity to cut off the ingrown part of the nail.

On many forums, people who have encountered a similar problem are advised to try a simple, but nevertheless effective method of treating an ingrown toenail. They recommend steaming the leg, and then take a small knife or a regular nail file and make a hollow right in the middle of the nail. That is, the obtained depression will have to pass from the cuticle to the top. After some time, the nail will begin to grow evenly, and you will no longer be bothered by pain and swelling.

Such a procedure should be carried out once every 3-4 weeks, taking into account the speed of nail growth. As soon as the uncut part grows back a little, it needs to be cut and thinned.

We talked about the methods that can be carried out at home. They are completely painless and also very effective. However, those who do not want to wait and patiently carry out procedure after procedure, can go to a doctor's appointment and ask for an operation to remove an ingrown nail. But not everyone knows that after the operation they will have to undergo a long course of rehabilitation. Such manipulations will also have to be experienced by those who have started the problem of an ingrown nail very strongly and home methods are simply not able to cope with it. In this case, you just need to go to a doctor's appointment.

When starting the treatment of an ingrown nail at home, you should ensure that your hands and the tool you are using to perform the treatment are clean.

Before starting treatment, you need to find out how deeply the nail has grown into the soft tissue of the nail. After that, an incision is made with scissors. Lidocaine can be used to numb the pain of the incision. Then you need to carefully insert one blade of manicure scissors under the ingrown nail and cut it. Be sure to make sure that the incision is made exactly where the nail comes out from under the skin. Now it remains to take tweezers and pull out a piece of the ingrown nail.

At the end of the procedure, a small groove should appear at the site of the removed ingrown nail. It will hurt for a while. If bleeding occurs, you must stop it as soon as possible. A cotton swab soaked in a solution of hydrogen peroxide will come in handy here. As soon as the bleeding is stopped, it is worth checking again whether all pieces of the ingrown nail have been removed. For the fastest possible healing of the skin, regular foot salt baths are recommended. They are designed not only to stop bleeding, but also to relieve inflammation.

Prevention of nail ingrowth

In order to protect yourself from repeating such an unpleasant problem, you should remember a few simple rules.

The first rule concerns the choice of shoes. Shoes should be spacious and wide enough. When you put on a new pair of shoes, you shouldn't feel like your foot is in a vise. Especially this rule must be strictly followed regarding the toe part of the shoes.

If you do not want to make a mistake with the size of the shoes, then you need to try on the shoes in a standing position. It will also be good if you take a few steps in new shoes. It turns out that as soon as a person stands up, the size of his foot increases by about one centimeter compared to a sitting position.

A very important point in preventing ingrown nails is compliance with the requirements of personal hygiene, as well as proper care of the toes. That is why you need to wash your feet with warm water and soap every day, change your socks or stockings.

When caring for toes, you need to choose the right tool.