Can My Ingrown Toenail Heal on Its Own?

Ingrown toenails can be extremely painful and very common, too. It’s estimated that ingrown toenails affect about 40% of Americans at some point.

The problem is, while these nails are uncomfortable, they can cause serious and more widespread infections in your foot and throughout your body without proper care. While resorting to home care is tempting, many infected nails need medical treatment to eradicate the infection and prevent complications.

At Forward Foot & Ankle, our team offers advanced treatment options for ingrown toenails, including ingrown toenail surgery for recurrent or deeply infected nails. Here’s why ingrown toenails happen and why seeking medical care for your ingrown toenail is a good choice for your overall health and wellness.

Understanding ingrown toenails

Ingrown toenails happen when the edge of your toenail (usually the big toe) grows into your skin instead of on top of it. As the nail grows, it presses deeper into your tissue, causing pain and providing an easy entry point for infection-causing bacteria.

Ingrown toenails don’t happen to everyone; when they do happen, they may be a once-in-a-lifetime problem. But other people have ingrown toenails fairly frequently, with recurrent infections that can increase their risk of serious complications.

Some of the most common causes of recurrent ingrown nails include:

• Naturally curved nail shape
• Trimming nails into a curved shape
• Wearing shoes with a tight toe area
• Wearing high heels
• Injury to your foot or toe
• Unusual foot anatomy
• Unusual gait (walking pattern)

Regardless of how often you have an ingrown toenail, seeking medical care is the best way to prevent problems and find quick pain relief. 

Why ingrown toenails need medical care

Many people mistakenly believe ingrown toenails are “no big deal,” a problem that will heal on its own eventually. But unless the nail itself is removed from the skin and properly trimmed, your symptoms and risk of infection will only increase.

While an ingrown nail may cause mild symptoms initially, as the nail grows, you can wind up with severe pain, tenderness, swelling, and pus discharge — sometimes even bleeding. Without prompt care, the infection can spread, increasing your need for amputation. That risk is elevated in people with diabetes, poor circulation, or compromised immune systems.

Our team carefully trims the nail for mild ingrown toenails and recommends soaking the foot in warm water. We also prescribe antibiotics to treat infection when present. For more severely ingrown nails, advanced infections, or people with risk factors like diabetes or circulation problems, we often recommend surgery. 

Performed in our office in under a half hour, surgery involves numbing your toe with a local anesthetic, carefully removing a sliver of your nail, and treating the underlying nail bed to prevent future nail growth in that area.

Don’t ignore your ingrown toenail

Ingrown toenails may not seem like a big deal, but they can quickly develop into a serious, limb-threatening infection without prompt medical care. If you have an ingrown toenail, don’t ignore it. Request an appointment online or over the phone with the Forward Foot & Ankle team in Midtown Manhattan and Staten Island, New York, today.