Ingrown Toenail in Orange County

Our Orange County Podiatrist / Foot and Ankle Surgeon can evaluate and treat your ingrown toenail at our Irvine, Orange, or Huntington Beach, CA offices.

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If you trim your toenails too short, particularly on the sides of your big toes, you may set the stage for an ingrown toenail, a common disorder. Like many people, when you trim your toenails, you may taper the corners so that the nail curves with the shape of your toe. This technique may encourage your toenail to grow into the skin of your toe. The sides of the nail curl down and dig into your skin.

 

An ingrown toenail in Orange County may also happen if you wear shoes that are too tight or too short. Any of your toenails can get ingrown, but it's most likely with your big toes. When you first have an ingrown toenail, it may be hard, swollen, and tender. Later, it may get red and infected, and feel very sore. You may see pus drain from it. Finally, your skin may start to grow over the ingrown toenail.

 

To treat an infected ingrown toenail in Orange County, soak your foot in warm, soapy water several times each day. You may need to gently lift the edge of the ingrown toenail from its embedded position and insert some cotton or waxed dental floss between the nail and your skin. Change this packing every day. If your infection is severe, our Orange County Podiatrist (foot doctor) may prescribe a course of antibiotics. Learn how to trim your toenails properly. Wear clean socks and open-toed shoes, such as sandals.

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If you are in a lot of pain and/or the infection keeps coming back, our Orange County Podiatrist may remove part of your ingrown toenail (partial nail plate avulsion). Your toe is injected with an anesthetic and our foot doctor uses instruments to cut away the ingrown part of the toenail, taking care not to disturb the nail bed.

 

Depending on the nail problem, the entire nail may also be removed. Our Orange County foot doctor will work with you to determine which procedure is best for your needs. It may take 3-4 months or longer for your nail to re-grow.

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Ingrown toenails in Orange County often recur. If you have a chronic problem with an ingrown toenail, our Orange County Podiatrist may recommend another surgical procedure in which the toenail's formative part is permanently removed.

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Please contact our office in Irvine, Orange, or Huntington Beach in Orange County, CA to make an appointment with our foot and ankle surgeon / podiatrist (Dr. Coyer) to have your ingrown toenail in Orange County fully evaluated and treated.

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