Do’s and Don’ts for Preventing and Treating Ingrown Toenails

At Goldsmith Podiatry, one of the most feared conditions among our Manhattan patients is the ingrown toenail. Although minor, toenails can inflict extreme pain when they become ingrown. During the winter months, an ingrown toenail can sneak up on you when you cover your feet with warm socks and shoes so much of the time. Below are some do’s and don’ts for avoiding and dealing with this unwanted condition.

Do: avoid shoes and hose that are tight in the toe area. When you squeeze toes up against each other for extended periods, the tendency for an ingrown toenail to develop increases.

Don’t: cut nails too short. Cut and file nails straight across. Rounded edges encourage nails to grow down and into the skin. When the nail is at or below the skin line of your toe, it is more likely to grow inward.

Do: wash your feet every day with soap and water. While doing so, inspect toenails for any signs of becoming ingrown. Early symptoms may include minor pain and redness. Pain will increase as the nail digs further into the skin surrounding the nail bed. If not treated promptly, the area will swell and become hot, and an infection may develop.

Don’t: wait to contact our Upper West Side office by calling 212-877-1002 to make an appointment to get your ingrown toenail taken care of. Although many patients worry it will be painful to treat, our podiatrists, Dr. Howard Goldsmith, Dr. Rosanna Troia, and Dr. Kristina Ruff are confident you will leave the office in less pain than when you arrived. We gently numb the affected toe and then remove the corner that is ingrown.

Do: recognize that there is a genetic component to ingrown toenails. Suppose you have a toenail that repeatedly becomes ingrown despite your best efforts at preventing it from doing so. In that case, you may need to have a minor in-office procedure to remove the root and permanently prevent the nail from growing back. Contact us today to learn more.