Ingrown toenail: what now?

Have the ingrown nail edge freed and then adjust the way you trim. With pus, throbbing pain or fever, see your GP.

The explanation

An ingrown toenail starts with an edge pricking into the skin, usually on the big toe. At that stage it is usually solved in one treatment. If it stays, the skin swells and inflammation can follow.

Picking at it yourself almost always makes it worse, because a spike is left behind that dives into the skin again as it grows. Patty frees the edge, removes what is pressing and finishes the edge smoothly so that does not happen.

Half the problem is in the trimming. Cut straight across, no shorter than the toe tip, and do not round off the corners. File the sharp edges smooth rather than cutting them away, and cut after showering when the nail is softer.

Patty's advice

Tight shoes keep the ingrowth going. Make sure there is enough length and width, with a thumb's width in front of the longest toe.

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