Ingrown toenails happen when the edges of your toenail grow towards the skin around them. Our professionals at Foot Care Associates offer effective treatment for ingrown toenails in Hackettstown, Washington, NJ.

What are the causes of ingrown toenails?

Many behaviors and conditions can increase your susceptibility to having ingrown toenails. The following are common examples on these conditions:

• Trimming the toenails in a mistaken way
• Wearing tight, uncomfortable footwear
• Having improper foot hygiene practices 
• Genetic factors.
• Suffering from a toenail injury 

What are the symptoms of ingrown toenails?

At the early stages of the disease, patients may be asymptomatic or have mild symptoms. As the disease progress, patients will suffer from tenderness, swelling, and pain in the affected toe. 

If you are suffering from ingrown toenails in Hackettstown, Washington, NJ, visit your podiatrist in our practice as soon as possible. Ignoring the symptoms and delaying the treatment will make the cure harder and the chance for complications higher.

Ingrown toenails prevention 

You can prevent Ingrown toenails from happening by making the following lifestyle modifications:

• Cutting your toenails straight without any curves
• Avoiding cutting the toenails too short
• Wearing proper-fitting shoes, socks, and tights

Your toenails can be abnormally curved or thick, especially if you are elderly. For such cases, surgery can be performed to prevent ingrown nails.

Treatment options 

Before starting in-office treatment, your podiatrist may recommend some effective home treatments. The home treatments include warm water baths and gentle massages for the affected toe. The home treatments are effective and can be tried as long as the infection hasn’t started. If there is an ongoing infection, your podiatrist will probably prescribe an oral antibiotic and perform an outpatient surgery to remove the offending nail. 

Contact us 

Having ingrown toenails can be painful and irritating, don’t hesitate to treat your ingrown toenails in our Hackettstown, Washington, NJ, office by the qualified podiatrists of Foot Care Associates, P.C. Call us at (908) 852-0229 and book your appointment now.