Why the nails on the big toes hurt: causes and treatment methods

November 25, 2018
Orthopedics and traumatology
Natali Michaelis

Do your big toe nails hurt? This problem is quite common and often worries people of various professions. In medicine, this disease is called onychocryptosis - a disease in which part of the nail grows into the skin and brings a strong feeling of discomfort. Although such a phenomenon can be very unpleasant, not only because of severe pain, but also because of its not entirely aesthetic appearance. In this article we will talk about the causes of onychocryptosis and methods of combating it.

Causes of the disease

Have you ever wondered why your big toe nails hurt? It is worth noting that such a disease can be caused by a variety of factors, the most common of which is improper nail trimming. However, this is far from the only cause of onychocryptosis. The list below will show the most common of them.

Using uncomfortable or too tight shoes. If your fingers constantly experience compression, the nail plate will eventually begin to grow into the roller, which will cause not only injury to the skin, but also the process of rotting. At first, only a small ulcer forms on the skin, which over time will grow into granulation tissue (in common parlance – “wild meat”).
Hereditary predisposition to onychocryptosis. Irregular nail shape is often inherited, so if you have pain at the edge of your big toe nail, you should talk to your parents about whether they have ever had this problem. Also, flat feet can act as a hereditary factor, which often provokes the nail to grow into the finger.
Various fungal infections. Deformation of nails can occur as a result of fungal infection of the feet. Infections also cause inflammation, causing the soft tissue to swell and come into contact with the nails.
Trauma or mechanical impact. In addition to improper trimming, this category can also include various injuries to the big toe that were caused by a direct blow to a hard surface or a heavy object falling on the foot.
Individual characteristics of the body. One of the least common reasons why large toenails hurt, but it is also worth mentioning. This may include increased exfoliation of the dermis, too rounded nails, and so on.

At the initial stage of the disease, an ingrown toenail can be treated at home without any problems. However, this is only possible if the nail does not have time to dig deep into the soft tissue. Otherwise, removing it on your own without surgery will be very difficult and extremely painful.

The main causes of pain under or near the nail beds

Various reasons can cause discomfort and pain in or near the nail plates of the thumb and other fingers, and why this happens is discussed in detail below.

Diseases

Reference. One of the most common causes of nail plate diseases is a fungal infection.

You can become infected with it through contact with surfaces on which the fungus “lives”:

shoes of an infected person;
floor in the pool, sauna, shower;
untreated pedicure tools.

The situation can be aggravated by improper care of the skin of the feet, as a result of which the epithelium hardens, turning into calluses, or is destroyed, becoming a favorable environment for bacteria and fungi. When affected by pathogenic microflora, the nail changes its color and structure, the skin around it becomes inflamed, and often begins to peel off.

The main diseases that cause nail problems include:

Onychomycosis

If this disease is ignored, the nail plate thickens and changes color, stripes or spots appear on it (normotrophic type), and in a neglected state, it is completely separated from the skin of the finger (hypertrophic type). Lesions may be localized on one or several nails.

Attention! The causative agents of this disease are dermatophytes and microspores.

Rubromycosis

The fungus red trichophyton affects the nail plates, making them thin, brittle and painful.

Candidiasis

Microcracks in the nail plates, as well as microcuts caused by pedicures, are an ideal environment for the proliferation of fungi of the genus Candida. Subsequently, swelling of the toes, their soreness, and inflammation of the skin around the nail develop.

Ringworm

Important! An infectious disease in which the inflammatory process spreads from the edges of the nail plate to its center.

As a result - a change in its color, compaction.

Athlete's foot

Causes inflammation and discoloration of the nail, skin and soft tissue around it.

Felon

A disease caused by the active proliferation of pyogenic bacteria. They enter the body through small wounds or cracks in the nail plate or epithelium. An increase in their number causes the development of the inflammatory process and the occurrence of painful sensations.

Onchocryptosis

A disease caused by the ingrowth of a nail into the skin of the finger. Along with mechanical reasons, fungal infections can also cause such an anomaly.

Reference. Diseases of the musculoskeletal system can cause pain in the nail: gout, arthrosis, arthritis or polyosteoarthrosis.

Such conditions require serious drug therapy, physical therapy, and diet: getting rid of pain by relieving only unpleasant symptoms will not work; relief will only be temporary.

Venereal and skin diseases can provoke pain in the toenails: gonorrhea, syphilis, psoriasis. Pain relief will be effective only if a true diagnosis is established and adequate treatment is prescribed.

Mechanical damage if the nail plate turns blue, darkened or blackened

Most often, pain in the nail develops due to mechanical damage received:

In case of injury. A person may not even be aware of the existence of an injury. For example, if we accidentally trip over a stone on the street, we immediately forget about what happened, and a bruised nail will remind us of what happened only a few hours or even days later.
Attention! There are a lot of situations in which you can bruise your fingers: traveling in crowded public transport, searching in the dark for the right door or object.
Sometimes, with a particularly strong blow, you can notice an accumulation of blood under the nail, turning it black or dark blue. Subsequently, part of the nail plate may “peel off”, but this will take a long time (from a month to three).
From constantly wearing low-quality and tight shoes. By squeezing the foot, it also injures the nails, gradually deforming them and causing them to grow into the flesh.
The last of cheap, low-quality shoes is often incorrectly designed: the weight of the body is not distributed over the entire sole, but only over some part. Artificial, airtight materials create a greenhouse effect inside, promoting the growth of bacteria. High heels and narrow toes can significantly damage the reputation of a high-quality pair of shoes: they can only be worn periodically without harm to health.
For sloppy pedicure. An accidental injury to the skin under the nail, cutting along with the dead area and part of the healthy skin will subsequently make itself felt by pain until the wounds heal.
The resulting defects must be periodically treated with antiseptics to avoid the development of inflammation. When you put on a new pair of shoes or boots, listen to how you feel. Fatigue, pain, a feeling of tightness, swelling and tension in the feet and legs up to the knees are a signal that it is better to change shoes.
Onchocryptosis (ingrown toenail) - a condition that causes a lot of discomfort and inconvenience, a state of constant pain. In addition to fungal infections, mechanical damage can provoke ingrown nail plates.
Most often, the nails on the big toes suffer from this problem, deformed from prolonged wearing of tight shoes, unsuccessful pedicures, or developing due to a genetic predisposition. In severe cases, people cannot stand on their feet or take even a step; ignoring this condition can lead to gangrene.
Important! To avoid this problem, doctors advise not to cut the corners of the nail plate, but to cut it in a straight line.

Symptoms of the disease

The tips of the toes have increased sensitivity, since there are quite a lot of nerve endings in the tissues. Therefore, an ingrown toenail will quickly make itself felt with severe pain, which will only increase if the person continues to walk in tight shoes.

Here are the main symptoms that occur with onychocryptosis:

the occurrence of suppuration, which develops over time into a chronic form;
change in the color of the nail, the appearance of various stripes and spots on it;
painful sensation at the edge of the nail bed;
redness of the affected skin area;
thickening of the nail plate;
pain when pressed.

Also, the nail often loses its natural shine, after which the skin peels off and becomes much thicker at the edges. It looks especially unsightly on the feet of young girls who try to take care of their toes.

Diagnostics

When you press

If pain occurs only when pressing on the nail, then you should pay attention to its integrity and color: yellow, white coating, thickening of the nail tissue, unpleasant odor - signs of fungal infection.
It will be possible to get rid of these defects, as well as pain, only with competent treatment prescribed by a dermatologist. The absence of modifications in the nail plate while pain persists is a reason to change shoes.

Constant unpleasant feeling

Pain under the nail plate is the first sign of the development of onychocryptosis. The first step is to confirm or exclude this diagnosis and begin treatment in a timely manner. Advanced onychocryptosis requires surgical intervention, so it is better to prevent the ingrowth of the plate until its lateral surface has completely grown into the tissue.

Reference. An immediate visit to the doctor will be required if blood or purulent discharge begins to ooze from under the nail, the body temperature has increased, and pulsation, sharp pain and burning are felt at the site of the ingrowth.

After removing gel polish

Regular application of gel polish thins the nail plate and destroys its structure. In the future, infection with a fungus is quite possible. The situation can be corrected. First, you need to temporarily give up pedicures using chemicals, and also undergo a course of restorative procedures using moisturizing oils and vitamin complexes.

Stages of onychocryptosis

Does your ingrown toenail hurt? This disease can have different stages, which differ in severity. The initial stage is characterized by throbbing pain and hyperemia on the finger in the area where the inflammation process occurs. After two to three days, if the patient is not given proper treatment, the condition will worsen significantly. During the second stage, the acute-angled plate of the nail begins to grow into the soft tissue of the cushion, after which the finger noticeably swells and a purulent-inflammatory process begins.

The last stage is accompanied by rupture of granulation tissue and release of pus to the outside. After this, the pain completely subsides and the healing process begins. However, sometimes the ingrowth process does not stop and the disease enters the chronic stage. In this case, complete recovery can only be achieved through surgical intervention.

Onychocryptosis is a recurrent disease that has a predisposition to constant recurrence of pain syndromes. As a rule, the patient is most worried not about the appearance of the nail plate, but about the pain, since very often they cause severe pain when walking and accidentally touching the painful area of the body.

Treatment of ingrown toenails in adults

Patients usually notice the problem of an ingrown toenail early because the toe begins to hurt.
If treated in time, you can cope with the inflammation on your own. Then the wound heals without any consequences. But inflammation in people with weakened immune systems can spread, and if bacteria infects the wound, it can cause inflammation with pus around or under the entire nail. It is then recommended to see a doctor, especially if the person also feels tired, has a fever, and the infection has spread down the toe and developed into cellulitis (an infection of the deeper layers of the skin).

Treatment of onychocryptosis at home

My big toe hurts, where is the nail? Without proper attention to this problem, the disease will sooner or later develop into a chronic stage. Of course, the most optimal method of treating this disease is immediate surgery, as a result of which the doctor will remove part of your nail plate. This method is absolutely painless and effective, since relapse after it occurs only in 10% of cases. However, contacting a specialist is not always possible due to various reasons, so we recommend that you familiarize yourself with eight methods of treating ingrown toenails at home using traditional medicine.

What to do for prevention?

A set of basic rules of hygiene and foot skin care can prevent most possible nail problems:

Carry out regular hygiene procedures for your feet, removing dead epithelium using pumice or other means.
Use moisturizing oils, lotions and creams, one of the properties of which is to strengthen the nail plate.
When visiting public places (swimming pools, saunas, baths, beaches), be sure to wear shoes (flip-flops) and use antifungal agents.
Avoid the services of pedicurists with a dubious or unverified reputation.
Buy shoes strictly according to size, avoid artificial materials that interfere with good ventilation.
Strengthen your immune system, monitor your diet, avoid physical overload and stress.

Nail pain requires attention and medical advice. Behind the imaginary insignificance of the problem, serious illnesses can be hidden, which are fraught with complications and even death. Timely drug treatment or surgical intervention can solve this issue, and in most cases a high level of personal hygiene can prevent it.

Ointment made from oil, onion and aloe

If your toenails hurt, you can prepare a special ointment from inexpensive ingredients that will completely cure the disease in just three days. To do this you will need to mix the following components:

melted butter - 1 tablespoon;
melted candle wax – 1 teaspoon;
grated onion – 1 tablespoon;
aloe juice – 1 tablespoon.

All ingredients are mixed together and heated over low heat or a water bath. The mixture should be constantly stirred with a wooden spatula or spoon.

After cooking, you need to take 1 leaf of cabbage and steam it in boiling water. We spread the ointment on it and apply it to the sore spot. For the best effect, it is recommended to steam your finger in warm water in advance, and then wrap the product with a bandage overnight. By the morning you will feel significant relief, and after 2-3 days the discomfort will completely go away.

Treatment with soda

Do your big toe nails always hurt? A classic baking soda solution will help cope with unpleasant symptoms. To prepare the product, you will need to dissolve 1 tablespoon of the substance in 2 liters of boiling water, then leave the bath for a few minutes to cool.

Treatment is carried out by steaming the finger in liquid for at least 30 minutes. After the procedure, you need to pry off the ingrown nail with a toothpick and push a small piece of cotton wool soaked in the same solution under it. You can also additionally wrap your finger with a bandage and go to bed, and the next morning all you have to do is remove part of the nail plate with nail scissors. After this, you will forget for a long time what it feels like when your big toe hurts near the nail. However, for preventive purposes, it is still recommended to wear loose shoes for some time.

Saline solution against ingrown toenails

If your big toe hurts under the nail, you can treat it with a regular saline solution. To prepare it, you will need to dissolve 2 tablespoons of salt in 1 liter of hot water, then let the product cool slightly so that you can place your foot in it for steaming.

Saline solution is excellent for eliminating inflammation, but it is not the best method for treating onychocryptosis, since the ingrowth will not stop after this. After the inflammation is relieved, the pain symptoms also go away, so you can combine this method with some other method.

Recommendations during the recovery period

The effectiveness of the treatment largely depends on the patient’s behavior during the rehabilitation period. Our experts give the following recommendations during the recovery period:

be careful not to allow the correction plates to come off and the staples to be lost;
temporarily stop wearing nail polish;
Use orthoses to prevent calluses while wearing braces.

For 5-6 days after laser surgery, it is necessary to change the bandage twice a day, treat the plate and side rollers with an antiseptic, and re-bandage the finger. On the 7th day, the bandage can be removed - this will speed up the process of tissue restoration. The patient should not visit saunas, steam baths, or swimming pools for a week.

Butter in folk medicine

Most people will be surprised, but if you have pain in the corner of your big toenail, you can treat it with regular butter. This method is especially helpful if the nail has already grown deep enough into the skin and it is no longer possible to trim it with scissors.

First, thoroughly steam the foot in regular hot water (you can use the saline solution described above), then lift a piece of the nail and put a small piece of frozen butter under it. All you have to do is wrap your finger in a plastic bag, put a cloth bandage on top and go to bed.

By morning, you need to re-steam your finger and place a cotton ball under it, well soaked in melted butter. If after the first course you still have pain in your big toes near the nail, then you need to continue treatment until the symptoms alleviate. It is also recommended to carefully trim the ingrown corner whenever possible.

Why do nails grow ingrown?

The most common cause of the disease is improper pedicure technique. The nail grows into the skin if you use scissors with rounded edges and cut off its corners.

The second most common cause is a fungus (onychomycosis). It leads to delamination of the plate, so it becomes brittle and can bend and “cut” into the roller.

Other causes of ingrowth may be:

pressing shoes, narrowed toes of shoes, boots;
hereditary predisposition;
blow, bruised finger.

These are key factors in the disease, but not the only ones. Inflammation of an ingrown toenail can also develop with flat feet, diabetes, and obesity.

Kombucha for onychocryptosis

Don't know what to do when your toenails hurt? Kombucha, previously steeped to the point where vinegar is formed, will help cope with pain. Treatment is carried out with one piece of medicine. We cut it off and place it on the affected area of the nail, then cover it with polyethylene and fix it with a plaster or fabric bandage.

This method is best done at night. By morning it will be easier for you to get rid of an ingrown toenail, since the tissues will noticeably soften and the pain symptom will completely disappear. After this, all that remains is to carefully pry the nail as deep as possible with manicure scissors and pull out the cut part using tweezers.

Sea buckthorn oil for medicinal purposes

The following recipe will help not only eliminate inflammation and pain, but also completely forget about an ingrown toenail once and for all. Do your big toenails hurt? Try using sea buckthorn oil, which can be purchased at any pharmacy. However, first it is recommended to treat the affected area with a weakly concentrated solution of potassium permanganate in order to kill fungal infections. After this, one drop of sea buckthorn oil is dripped onto the affected area, and then the finger is wrapped in a leaf of plantain, previously scalded with boiling water. The bandage can be secured with a sterile bandage.

It is also recommended to wear a thick sock on top after fixation so that the treatment is not in vain. If such manipulations are carried out at night, then by morning the nail will noticeably soften and the pain effect will subside. In no case do not stop treatment after the symptoms have eased, but pry up the nail plate and place a cotton ball soaked in sea buckthorn oil under it. The healing properties of this remedy are much wider than you can imagine.

Treatment of the patient

Only a professional can name the exact cause of a nail problem, so a visit to a therapist or dermatologist is mandatory.
The specialist will determine why this or that problem has arisen with the nails of the thumb or other finger, where exactly the lesion is localized, near or under the nail plate, and will prescribe the necessary and effective treatment. Pain caused by wearing low-quality shoes will go away on its own immediately after changing them; pain resulting from a bruise or sloppy pedicure will go away as the wound heals or injured tissues recover.

Medication

If the cause of pain is a disease, then drug treatment cannot be avoided. The selection of medications is made only by a doctor on a purely individual basis, depending on the diagnosis, the severity of the disease and the characteristics of the patient’s body.

Therapy is carried out using the following drugs:

Analgesics (Ibuprofen, Analgin, Pentalgin) are prescribed for severe pain.
Antifungal agents (Fluconazole, Mycozoral, Lamisil, Exoderil, Kanizon) are used when affected by onychomycosis or any other fungal disease.
Antibacterial therapy (“Amoxiclav”, “Tsiprolet”) will be appropriate for felon.
The use of corticosteroids, Heparin and antihistamines will be needed for ringworm.

Attention! Delayed treatment or lack thereof is fraught with serious consequences. Purulent inflammation and swelling of soft tissues can sooner or later provoke the loss of a finger or its motor function.

A particular danger is sepsis, a blood poisoning that can be fatal.

Folk remedies

Often, patients with nail pain problems resort to traditional medicine, and this is no coincidence: baths and compresses using natural ingredients help reduce the intensity of inflammatory processes, moisturize and relax the skin and nail plates, which cannot but affect their appearance and condition. .
The following recipes have gained particular popularity:

For fungal infections and injuries, treating the nail plate with iodine will be useful. Two to three times a day, the product is applied to the surface of the nail or instilled under it.
Onion and celandine juice are a natural antiseptic that helps prevent the growth of pathogenic microflora and relieve inflammation. It is enough to apply the product to the affected areas 3-4 times a day and you can soon forget about problems with your nails.
Essential oils of mint, almond, apricot, and tea tree will help strengthen your nails and minimize the unpleasant consequences of bruises or other microtraumas. These products can be applied directly to the nail plate or added to cream or warm water for foot baths.
Soda can cure purulent inflammation: 1 tbsp. l. sodium bicarbonate is dissolved in 200 ml of boiling water, which is subsequently cooled to +40 °C. Dip the foot with the sore nail into the soda solution for 5–10 minutes once a day (preferably at night). In case of acute inflammation, the procedure can be performed every 2–3 hours.
For ingrown toenails, use a compress with butter. Before going to bed, butter 2–3 mm thick is applied to the washed problem nail, a finger cap and a clean cotton sock are put on. The procedure is carried out daily for 2–3 weeks.

Important! Traditional medicine methods are not a panacea; they can be used as an adjunct without replacing the main treatment prescribed by a doctor.

Calendula, chamomile and iodine

If your big toes hurt, then taking a bath with a strong healing infusion will help you cope with the unpleasant symptoms. Mix 50 grams of medicinal plants with each other, then pour 1 liter of boiling water over them and leave the product to infuse in a dark room for two hours. After this, the liquid is thoroughly filtered through several layers of gauze and heated over a fire to a temperature suitable for the bath. After this, you can begin treatment for onychocryptosis.

Steam your finger in the healing product, then pry off the nail with a toothpick and place a cotton ball soaked in the broth there. This is far from a painless method, since iodine will cause burning pain on the wound, but it is necessary to endure this process. This solution can be used up to two times a day, but it is best to do it in the morning and before bed.

aloe leaves

To carry out this treatment method, you need to select a sufficiently mature plant and pick a couple of petals from it. It is best not to water the aloe for two days before cutting, so that the juice contains less water and more healing substances. After cutting, the leaves must be washed under running water and placed in the freezer for 60 minutes. After the allotted time, you need to remove them from the cold and grind them in a blender or meat grinder.

The resulting pulp must be applied to the previously steamed sore area, and then fix the product with a fabric bandage. In the morning all actions are repeated. There are many reviews on the Internet about this method, and most people say that the pain goes away after a day of treatment. However, be prepared for the fact that you may need more time, because each of us has our own body characteristics.

We hope you now have a better understanding of what to do if your large toenails hurt. All of the methods described above help fight only the symptoms of onychocryptosis, and not its essence, so it is also recommended to pay special attention to the prevention of the disease. For example, if it is caused by uncomfortable wearing shoes, then be sure to update your wardrobe with new slippers. If the cause of an ingrown toenail is a fungal disease, then you will also have to fight the root of the problem - the causative agent of the disease. To do this, you can buy antifungal ointment at the pharmacy or make it at home. In the most advanced cases, do not hesitate to go to the hospital, since resolving the issue of eliminating an ingrown toenail usually takes a couple of minutes.

Doctor

If you experience pain in your nails, it is necessary to exclude the development of a fungal disease, so be sure to visit a dermatologist and mycologist.
But if you suspect a bruise, you should seek help from a traumatologist; an ingrown toenail is treated by a surgeon. If the cause of the pain in the nail has not been identified, you should see a therapist, who will collect a complete medical history and write out directions for certain tests. After receiving the results of the examination, treatment will be prescribed or consultation with other specialists will be required. Share: