No one is immune from injuries at home. Every inhabitant of our planet has encountered such a problem as bruising his toes on furniture. But what should you do if you catch your nail in a door and it starts to turn blue? Doctors listen to these and many other complaints every day. You can pinch a nail on both your hand and your toe. At the same time, significant discomfort arises, which slows down the usual rhythm of life. A nail can only turn blue if it is severely bruised. The blue color of the plate occurs as a result of hemorrhage. It is very important to take timely therapeutic measures to prevent peeling of the nail plate.
Despite the fact that everyone has encountered this problem, few people know what to do first. If you have pinched a nail on your toe or hand, it is very important to provide first aid. This will help avoid blueing of the nail and further blackening. This problem is always accompanied by severe pain and swelling of the finger. These are the symptoms that need to be eliminated quickly.
As soon as you have pinched your finger, it is important to stop the bleeding so that the hematoma is not so noticeable and the nail does not turn blue. Any source of cold is applied to the affected area - a cold bottle of water, ice, meat from the freezer, snow, cold water. Keep the damaged nail in the cold for at least 15 minutes. During this period of time, vasoconstriction occurs, which reduces pain.
After this, you should definitely consult a doctor for help. The doctor should know that you pinched your nail, and it was as a result of this that it turned blue. Depending on the severity of the injury, the specialist may decide to remove the damaged plate. But in this case this rarely happens. Only when the peeling of the nail has already begun on its own. In severe cases, visual inspection alone is not enough. An x-ray will need to be taken to determine if there is a finger fracture.
Having pinched a nail, the patient may complain of:
If the damaged area turns a bright blue color, sometimes even black, the doctor may take emergency measures. Using sterile instruments, a thin needle is inserted under the nail bed. This procedure is necessary in order to release blood from under the plate. This may save the nail from further removal. But it is strictly forbidden to carry out such manipulations on your own.
If, after first aid, the blue color of the fingernail or toenail remains, and it is not possible to visit a specialist, you should follow the following tips:
It would not be superfluous to treat the nail with ricinol emulsion immediately after the bruise. This remedy will help quickly relieve swelling and stop bleeding, which will prevent the nail from turning blue. Also, the emulsion promotes rapid regeneration of damaged plate cells. Anti-inflammatory ointments are highly effective. When used, the hematoma resolves within a few days. The plate acquires a natural, even color, even the nail turns completely blue or black. The most popular products in this group are heparin ointment and arnica.
To avoid swelling of the entire limb after you have pinched a nail, you need to apply an iodine mesh to the limb. And if there is severe swelling of the finger, apply a pressure bandage. This dressing will reduce the risk of the plate turning blue. To prevent infection of the damaged area, you need to lubricate the diseased nail itself with an iodine solution.
A large number of people around the world are faced with the problem of ingrown toenails. And quite a few of them come to the doctor with the fact that their toenail has grown in and is festering. At the same time, they experience severe pain, discomfort and are unable to move normally. Often in this situation, the only way out is surgical intervention, but in some cases other treatment methods can be used.
One of the most common problems in the world is ingrown toenails. They occur even in children and can cause a lot of suffering and anxiety. Moreover, most patients come to the doctor with this problem in rather advanced cases, when inflammation processes have already begun. And some go to the doctor with pronounced purulent changes in the areas of ingrown nail corners.
And every patient is interested in why the nail has grown in and what led to the inflammation. There are many reasons for this, and they should be understood in detail.
Important! There are many additional reasons, among which it is necessary to highlight fungal infection of the nail plate, injuries, chronic diseases (diabetes), and vitamin deficiencies. Often, the occurrence of ingrown toenails is associated with surgical intervention on the toes. It can also lead to flat feet or club feet.
Direct suppuration of the nail occurs due to infection. This can happen during a pedicure or when you roughly try to separate the corner of the nail yourself. And even if everything was done carefully, but no further processing was carried out followed by the application of a clean bandage, the likelihood of infection is high. Often the root cause of nail suppuration is the wounds that form at the sites of ingrowth. This is especially true for diabetics.
A nail that grows deep into the nail bed itself acts as a kind of foreign body for the body. Therefore, gradually he will try to get rid of the problem. The result of this is an inflammatory reaction, which can develop into a purulent process. Especially if it is too late to pay attention to it or do not start treatment. It is important to carry out a course of therapy at the very beginning of deepening the nail plate.
Symptoms of an ingrown nail and the subsequent development of an infectious process are characteristic, and it is difficult to confuse it with another nail pathology. Initially, there is swelling and some redness in the area of ingrowth, which does not cause much discomfort and can only hurt when pressed. Sometimes there is a feeling of fullness or pressure, but at this stage few pay attention to the problem.
Subsequently, swelling and inflammation begin to increase, and if treatment is not started, purulent changes will appear over time. Outwardly, this is manifested by purple discoloration of the periungual fold, from under which pus is often released. The skin in this area becomes hot to the touch. The reason is the addition of a streptococcal or staphylococcal infection. The leading symptoms at this stage are pronounced.
There is a sharp swelling of the nail and intense throbbing pain that is constantly disturbing. A purulent abscess gradually forms, acquiring a yellowish tint due to purulent contents. At this stage, urgent medical attention is required, since in the absence of treatment there is a high probability of the contents breaking through, penetrating under the nail and spreading the infection throughout the body.
Important! A quick and effective solution is to perform an urgent operation to open the suppuration and remove the accumulated pus. It is performed under local anesthesia and rarely takes more than half an hour. Antibacterial therapy is mandatory, and, if necessary, antifungal therapy.
Conservative treatment methods are very effective in the development of ingrown toenails. But only in the very early stages, when the inflammation has not ended in suppuration. And there are no signs in the form of severe swelling, redness, increased local skin temperature or pain. The main goal of treatment will be to push back the sharp corners of the nail plate and trim them carefully.
This can be done after special baths that help steam the soft tissues of the finger and the nail itself. They can be different and based on different ingredients placed in hot water (per 1 liter):
The duration of such a bath should be at least 10–15 minutes, after which you need to thoroughly dry your feet. It is necessary to try to move the edges of the nail beyond the soft tissues by carefully placing a small piece of cotton wool (in the form of a roller) soaked in an antiseptic (brilliant, iodine) under them. You need to try to make the roller longer so that it can be easily pulled out if necessary. If the nail edges cannot be removed immediately, several similar procedures can be performed.
You can carefully remove the edges of the nail plates and speed up recovery using a number of proven pharmaceutical drugs.
Thanks to the listed means, it is easier to release ingrown corners of nails and the periungual fold as they grow.
If inflammation develops in the affected area, you will need to apply a bandage with an antibacterial composition (Vishnevsky ointment, Tetracycline ointment, Gentamicin ointment). If fungus is present, antifungal agents are needed (Lamisil, Nizoral). And in case of severe pain, the bandages can be additionally treated with lidocaine solution. In more severe cases, oral antibiotics will be required. To prescribe them, you should consult a doctor who can select the most suitable drug.
Today, for medical purposes, hardware treatment methods are widely used to help quickly resolve the issue of ingrown nail plates. But it is best to use them at the initial stages of the development of ingrowth processes, while the inflammation is not very pronounced and there are no signs of suppuration yet. Among several methods, the most popular ones should be considered.
Important! Despite the high effectiveness of the listed hardware techniques, before using them it is necessary to undergo a full examination by a specialist. Usually this is a podologist. He will be able to identify the main risks and recommend the most appropriate treatment method.
In the treatment of ingrown nails, folk recipes also have a fairly good therapeutic effect. Their purpose is to give the correct direction of nail growth. This is done by removing the ingrown edges from under the surrounding soft tissues after steaming the toes in the above-mentioned baths.
To accomplish the main task, you can use the following methods:
The result of these actions will be the gradual alignment and unfolding of the nail, which will gradually take the correct position. Thanks to the freed edges, the source of constant trauma and irritation of soft tissues will disappear. As a result, inflammation processes quickly pass.
When suppuration begins in the area of the affected nail, you can stop it with the following home recipes.