Toenail Trauma

An injury to your toenail is likely to be extremely painful. If this has happened to you, you should seek treatment immediately. But if you’re reading this for general informational purposes, we hope you’ll remember what to do if you ever suffer trauma to a nail. We at Integrity Foot and Ankle Associates in Lorain assist patients with all sorts of podiatric needs, and although toenail trauma is scary, it usually heals well if the proper protocol is followed.

The word “avulsion” is used to describe a nail that is wholly or partially torn off. If you suffer a nail avulsion, you should trim down the jagged edge so that it won’t catch on your sock or any other cloth you wrap it in on your way to treatment. However, you should not remove any other portion of the nail that remains. Even if your doctor has to remove the entire nail in a clinic, it can still provide protection from infectious microbes while you are in transit. Nails can usually regrow as long as the nail bed hasn’t been reshaped by scar tissue resulting from an infection or the injury itself. If the congealed blood underneath your remaining nail bed covers a small enough area, it may be able to be drained through a small puncture. If not, the injury beneath the nail bed may require stitches.

Often during treatment for nail bed trauma, an x-ray is taken of the patient’s foot to determine if their toe bones are fractured. If they are not, the toe would still need to be kept covered while the nail regrows, which could take as long as eighteen months. You will receive instructions from your doctor on caring for your toenail while it recovers, but you will need to avoid pinching it in tight shoes or socks and change the covering regularly. You will have to keep the bandages dry while you bathe, and use all of the antibiotics you are directed to use.

Doctors David J. Hintz and Michael A. Wenowitz run Integrity Foot & Ankle Associates at 1740 Cooper Foster Park Road #B, Lorain, Ohio, 44053. To schedule an appointment, visit Integrity Foot and Ankle or call 440-282-1221.