# Ingrown Toe Nail - Home Remedy?



## Shepherd (Jan 23, 2005)

I have had ingrown toenails for years on my big toes but woke up this morning with a lot of pain when I touched one of them. After showering I thought I'd better "treat" the nail by cleaning and clipping... and saw a little infection coming out in the corner. I was thinking I should soak it in hot water and ?something? to help draw the infection out more but cannot think of what to use that I'd have around the house. Any recommendations?

I have an appointment with my Doctor next Tuesday so I will have her look at it then but in the meantime would like to get it under control before it becomes a real problem.


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## bajiay (Apr 8, 2008)

If you have any tea tree oil you can put some on a q-tip and clean it with that. If you clip it and get it to start draining, you can soak your foot in warm water and apple cider vinegar.


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## wr (Aug 10, 2003)

Soak it in hot water with salt or epsom salts if you have them. I've also found that using tea bag compresses can be quite effective too.


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## Shepherd (Jan 23, 2005)

Thank you so much; I washed it good, then flushed it with hydrogen peroxide.

I am about to try the epson salts/hot water soak. Then I will use Melaleuca Triple Antibiotic Ointment and a bandaid to keep it clean.

Normally I'd clip the nails at this point, but man as bad as this WAS hurting (before it opened up and drained a little), I think I'll wait a day or two. Ba GAWWWKKK (big chicken!). 

Thank you - thank you! I appreciate you guys being around with some answers when I need them. Whew.


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## Michael W. Smith (Jun 2, 2002)

Shepherd said:


> I have had ingrown toenails for years on my big toes . . . . . . . . . . .
> 
> . . . . . .I have an appointment with my Doctor next Tuesday . . . . .


I used to get ingrown toenails all the time too - even as a kid. If this has been a continuous problem, skip the regular doctor and go directly to a podiatrist (if your insurance will let you). Your regular doctor won't do anything to help.

After I finally went to a podiatrist (and he worked on my ingrown toe nails several times), he finally used an acid solution that actually kills part of the toenail that gives you the problem as well as cutting it back. 

I know, I know - it sounds horrible, but they use freezing stuff that numbs your foot plus gives a shot. But it sure beats the pain of recurring ingrowns.

I haven't hardly had any trouble since.


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## Toads tool (Jun 7, 2007)

They went in and cut the corners out out of my wifes big toes way back into the quick almost to the knuckle. They took a 90 degree wedge out of each side all the way to the nail bed.

It's funny because her toe nails are perfectly straight and about half the width they used to be. They come straight out and have no curved sides to ingrow.

She hasn't had a problem since.


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## Wendy (May 10, 2002)

My husband had both of his big toenails removed because of ingrown nails.


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## unregistered29228 (Jan 9, 2008)

Michael W. Smith said:


> I used to get ingrown toenails all the time too - even as a kid. If this has been a continuous problem, skip the regular doctor and go directly to a podiatrist (if your insurance will let you). Your regular doctor won't do anything to help.
> 
> After I finally went to a podiatrist (and he worked on my ingrown toe nails several times), he finally used an acid solution that actually kills part of the toenail that gives you the problem as well as cutting it back.
> 
> ...


My MIL had hers treated this way....they killed the nail bed and now she only has a small nail in the center. She's diabetic so this is much healthier for her than having one infected toenail after another.


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## soulsurvivor (Jul 4, 2004)

I'm the official pedicure person in this house and toes are soaked in hydrogen peroxide along with any surgical instruments being used. After toenails have been cut and cleaned, a dose of Neosporin is massaged into the sides and tops of each toe around the nail. No problems yet.


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## Queen Bee (Apr 7, 2004)

I would say it's time to seek medicial attention.. My youngest had ingrown toe nails for 11yrs. He was in college and would not go to the dr.--he "didn't have time, he was tuff, it wasn't so bad"! When he graduated and was no longer on our insurance --and he had none --that was his excuse. Four the last four yrs. he really struggled with pain, infection--draining and bleeding. He would get it out and then it would start all over again.. Then he got insurance, went to the dr. and they treated them them that day. They ended up giving him shots. They used an acid (I think that's what they called it.) Gave him really strong pain meds.and really strong antibodies and sent him home. He went to work that afternoon and 'kept waiting for the pain to set in" (his words). He said for the first time in 8yrs. he didn't have sever pain when he wore his shoes, ran, played tennis, golf, ball etc. For the first time he didn't cringe when someone walked close to his feet. He didn't suffer when he swam!!! It's been 6months, his toes look healthy and I qoute: " I kick myself every time I put my shoes on. I was crazy to suffer so much"... He said he tells anyone who has ingrown nails to go to the dr. and get them taken care of NOW!! He swears--he had infection in his entire system--causing sinus, ear and throat infections all the time.. It cost his insurance 48$.


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## GrannyG (Mar 26, 2005)

Soak your foot in warm salt water. Salt has healing properties. Take some cotton and try to tuck a little bit under the area where it is growing into the skin...use some triple antibiotic ointment on it...repeat in the morning.


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## woodsrunner (Nov 28, 2003)

I used to suffer from ingrown toe nails something terrible. I discovered I needed extra wide shoes a size and a half smaller than I had been wearing. I was trying to make up for wide feet by buying larger sizes rather than wider. As soon as I started wearing proper fitting shoes, I stopped having problems. I also trim my nails much more frequently now.


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## tamsam (May 12, 2006)

My Mom had problems and someone told me of an old time fix. Take crushed alum and make a paste with it and put on the nail ans wrap with gause and keep it damp. After several days hers was better and she didn't have anymore problems. Of course I kept them cut for her as the way you cut them can cause them to get ingrown. Hope you get yours fixed. Sam


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## Quint (Nov 12, 2004)

My sympathies.

I went though several years of really, really bad ingrown toenail problems back in the early 90s I guess.

Mine would get terribly ingrown and infected. Infected bad enough that I could smell it. I finally began taking care of them myself. I'd get e clean towel and lay it on the bed along with some gauze and a set of sterilized x-acto knives and needle nose pliers. I'd get my courage up and start cutting. I'd slice my nail down as far as I could into the base then cut into the base of my toe a bit and try to get all the way down to toenail root. Once you started cutting into the skin is when the blood started to become an issue. Before things got too slippery and bloody I'd grab the offending side of the nail I had partially cut free with the pliers and rip it out. Yes it was painful and it made your eyes water no doubt about it. To be blunt, it <expletive redacted> hurt like a <expletive redacted>.

While this worked for a while, eventually the nail would grow back and the more you cut the more you knew how bad it was going to hurt and the longer you put off doing it. Finally I went to the podiatrist because I couldn't deal with another DIY surgery. While he complimented me on my technique he said I just wasn't getting anywhere and that the nail needed to be killed. In fact when I went, they had grown back as bad as before and were of course infected again. He said they were just about as bad as he ever sees. Only a couple he'd ever sen were as bad. He did the surgery and fixed the problem forever.

Now the surgery isn't all that bad but the shots they give you are just excruciating. 5 shots, three sticks in each hole.  On the plus side you can't feel a thing when he's working. After he cut the offending nail sections out he put carbolic acid on the root to prevent any regrowth. He then packed drains into the edges and sent me home. It hurt like blazes when the Novocain wore off and I removed the drains myself which I wasn't suppose to.

I'm glad I had it done though. Should have had it done sooner. No more DIY toe surgery and I've never had another problem with ingrown toenails.


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## mrs oz (Jul 3, 2007)

My brother suffered with ingrown toenails as a young man. When they would get infection in, Mom would take a raw potato and grate it fine. Put it on the toe and wrap it up with gauze and leave it on overnight. It would draw the infection out. That was a sort of stop gap until he went to the doc. He eventually had both big toenails removed and the roots killed so they wouldn't grow back.


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## Jenn (Nov 9, 2004)

never cut your toenails shorter than the end of the toe. straight across or even curved in at the middle, never oval shaped like fingernails can be


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