Toenail injuries

Toenail injuries can happen unexpectedly. Something heavy can fall on your foot, your nail can be crushed when it hits a hard surface, or your nail can shrink and turn blue when you run in uncomfortable shoes. What causes toenail injuries and what can you do about them?

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Nail injury due to falling heavy object

When a weight falls on the foot, the nail immediately reacts to it. A person can scream in pain, jump on the other, healthy, foot, and at night his temperature can rise and he can twitch his foot under the nail. This means that not only the nail, but also the toe is badly injured. He begins to limp on one leg, put everything that is called cold on the sore toe, and still wake up at night from pain under the nail - at least 2-3 nights.

Almost immediately after the blow, the nail turns blue, then black, and finally begins to fall off the sore finger with pain and suffering. The nail turns black because internal bleeding has occurred under it due to the injury. Then there are two options - when the nail falls off (because now it is no longer living tissue, but dead tissue), a new one will begin to grow under it on the finger. This new nail will first be uneven, wavy, unsightly, small, and then it will become smooth and shiny. Is this the only option? Of course not.

A new nail can grow crooked, humped, unsightly and yellow. This will happen if a person did not spare himself and his nails: smoked, wore tight shoes, put excessive strain on his feet, did not take vitamins and had a diet poor in proteins, fats and carbohydrates.

How long will it take to recover?

In order for a normal, clean, even, beautiful nail to grow, a person may need at least 4-8 weeks, maximum - 4-6 months. During this time, it is very important to keep your feet clean and make sure that there are no wounds or hangnails on them, and if this happens, treat them with bactericidal agents. Otherwise, a bacterial infection can penetrate under the nail and ruin everything.

At this time, it is also worth wearing properly selected shoes. After all, the nail can turn black and fall off or grow slowly due to the fact that it is tight in shoes that restrict movement. Correctly selected shoes are those where there is a space between the toe and the end of the big toe equal to the nail of the big toe.

Blackening of the nail due to tight shoes

Fashion lovers may not think about their own health at all, and most of them may be at risk of losing a nail. Or several, if they wear shoes that are too narrow and tight. This is especially true for athletes, who are also not averse to paying tribute to fashion. However, sports fashion. If a person runs, walks a lot, jumps or does other sports in such shoes, the feet will be subject to increased stress, and the nails will be the first to suffer from this, as they will be the first to take the hit.

A nail that is squeezed by tight shoes first turns black and then begins to peel off the finger - just like when something heavy hits it. The only thing is that the pain may be less, and there may be no increase in temperature.

But a hematoma (bruise) also forms under the nail, which colors the nail (or rather, the space under it) black or dark blue. At the same time, the area under the nail pulsates, which is quite painful. The pain can last 5-6 hours or even a whole day. The blood that accumulates under the nail worsens the situation, putting even more pressure on the nail. A person may feel like the finger is being torn.

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How to treat such a nail?

You can treat the sore toenail with iodine solution. Then you need to let the blood out of the hematoma so that it does not accumulate and does not cause such severe pain, pressing on the nail. You can take a needle or a paper clip, heat it on a burner and burn a hole in the nail. The accumulated blood will flow out through it. There is no need to worry: the blood flow can be quite strong, but this is useful, not harmful.

After this, you need to apply a compress soaked in cold water or ice to the nail - this will relieve inflammation and pain under the nail. Keep in mind that the blood from the hematoma must be released immediately after the nail is damaged, because otherwise the nail will begin to peel off.

Precautionary measures

If you do not puncture the hematoma, a new nail will slowly begin to grow in place of the old one, and the old nail will peel off. If it still hurts for several days after the injury, you can dip your foot in cold water from time to time - this will relieve the pain and inflammation a little.

To avoid pus under the nail and to avoid infection, you can use Vishnevsky ointment for disinfection. You should try to take sick leave if you are at work, and not squeeze the nail with shoes - no shoes, neither tight nor spacious.

If you are afraid to puncture the hematoma and perform subsequent manipulations, you need to contact a surgeon, he will do it in normal hospital conditions to avoid infection.

If you don't remove the nail

Then the healing process will go better. The thing is that when removing a nail, even in a hospital setting, the nail bed is always injured, and this is very painful and bad for the finger. The new nail in its place is not protected, it can grow very poorly, in layers, and infection can penetrate it, since the nail plate is still very weak.

If you do not remove the nail, the old nail will be hollow in the middle, and a new nail plate will grow under it. The old nail will protect it from damage and injury. To give both nails - the old and the new - this opportunity, you need to fix the old nail with a plaster or bandage for a while while the new one is growing, and do not wear any shoes at all for a week or even two.

If during this time there is no blood or suppuration under the nail, then the healing process is going well, you can not worry. The blood that has already dried will stick to the new young nail and will not interfere with its growth. As the growth process proceeds, you need to remove the old nail tissue with tweezers or scissors.

How to protect your nails when hiking?

When you go hiking, you need to consider that you can fall, walk for a long time and climb mountains and rough terrain, that shoes can pinch or rub. Therefore, you need to take care of safety measures for the health of your feet and toenails in advance.

Choose spacious shoes and do not squeeze your feet with laces

For hiking, you should not take sneakers or boots with very hard toes. It is best to use shoes with shock-absorbing soles and orthopedic insoles that breathe well.

To avoid putting pressure on the nail if it is too long and rests against the toe of the shoe, monitor its optimal length. Trim the shoe as needed.

To protect your feet during hikes, be sure to buy socks made of natural fabric, and have thick socks that absorb moisture well in stock. They will protect your feet and nails from impacts, and your feet will feel comfortable in them.

When you go downhill, your nails experience increased stress because all the weight falls on them. Use a little trick: go downhill sideways, this way you will protect your nails from bruises underneath them.

Do not use too slippery insoles. They can cause hematomas and nail injuries. Check before going whether the insole is comfortable and, if necessary, replace it.

Use shoes with the right last. The right last is one in which the heel is lower than the toe and narrower than the tip. If it is the other way around, the pressure on the big toes will be increased, and the foot will slide and press the nails on the toe of the shoe.

If you have to run a lot, spend some time learning proper running technique first. Otherwise, your knees and feet will be under increased strain, not to mention your nails. Learn to run with a sort of "scooping" stride, so that your feet roll over the ground rather than hit it.

Nail damage during pedicure

Nails can also get damaged when you want to make them beautiful. That is, during a pedicure. If the specialist does not carefully push back the cuticle, cuts the cuticle or the nail itself too much, then damage to the nail folds can occur.

If the cuticle is regularly cut incorrectly, the nail can resemble an old washing board: it will be all wavy. When the cuticle is damaged, part of the nail is damaged, and after that it can no longer grow correctly.

If you use cheap nail polishes for your toes, products with acetone, or other chemical products for treating your nails, they will also be damaged. Toenails may turn yellow or become covered with white stripes, they may begin to flake and break. This is especially true for little fingers, where nails may even break into two parts if not properly cared for, and when caught on everything, including socks, tights, and bed linen, they can cause severe pain and bleeding. After all, this is a serious injury.

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Hangnails lead to injuries

A nail can turn black and change its color due to banal hangnails. How can this happen? It's very simple: a hangnail can lead to bacteria getting under the nail. This can lead to blood poisoning or fungus under the nails, which is then very long and difficult to treat. A nail can turn black and fall off due to the penetration of pathogenic bacteria and fungus.

Hangnails above toenails can occur not only due to improper cutting of the cuticle. Or cutting of the cuticle with a low-quality, blunt, cheap tool. They can also occur due to too frequent use of various chemicals, such as detergents. The skin of the toenails reacts to them instantly: it immediately changes from smooth to rough, can crack, ulcers and wounds can form on it.

Hangnails can also appear due to poor personal hygiene, when feet are not washed on time, when a person wears poor-quality shoes, synthetic socks, which causes the skin to become irritated and flaky. If a person has closely located vessels on the toes, the risk of hangnails increases.

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What to do with hangnails on your feet?

You can't tear them off or cut them with blunt scissors, especially not disinfected ones. They need to be cut with sharp scissors that have been pre-heated on a fire, disinfected with an alcohol solution, or heated in a special cabinet for manicure instruments. Otherwise, infection is possible, and the result will be a black, fallen off nail.

The wound that opened after cutting off the hangnail should be disinfected, you can also use a wound healing agent to avoid pain. Sea buckthorn oil or calendula oil are suitable for this. If the wound bleeds after cutting off the hangnail, you can sprinkle it with an inexpensive but very effective powder - streptocide. It will perfectly disinfect the wound. And, of course, after this procedure you should try not to put on shoes for now, at least for 2-3 hours.

Be healthy and protect your toenails from injury and improper care.