ANSWER: Toenail fungus is an infection that’s usually caused by a microscopic organism called dermatophyte fungus. These infections can be contagious, and they are often difficult to eliminate completely. Fortunately, for most healthy adults toenail fungus doesn’t pose any serious health risks.
Toenail fungus is a common condition that begins as a white or yellow spot under the tip of your toenail. As the infection goes deeper, nail fungus may cause your nail to discolor, thicken and crumble at the edge. Fungal infections are more likely to happen in your toenails than in your fingernails because toenails often are confined in a dark, warm, moist environment — inside your shoes — where fungi can thrive. Toes also have less blood flow than fingers, making it harder for your body’s immune system to detect and stop the infection.
The older you are, the more likely you are to get toenail fungus. That’s because as you age, your immune system changes. In addition, your nails become more brittle and drier over time, creating more cracks where fungus can live.
Has Anybody Been Able To Treat Nail Fungus Succesfully?
Toenails are made up of multiple layers stacked on top of each other. Toenail fungus can be tough to get rid of because it can get into and in between those layers. It may also sit on top of the nail or grow underneath it. In some cases, fungus can get into the cells that make the nail, called the nail matrix. That can make the fungus very difficult to eliminate because the cells manufacturing the rest of the toenail are infected.
The good news, though, is that toenail fungus typically does not lead to bigger medical problems. With that in mind, I generally encourage healthy adult patients with mild toenail fungus to not treat it or to treat it just using topical measures. For example, you can buff the nail down with a file to keep it thin, so the fungus has less of a home to live in. You should also keep the nail trimmed. If you let your toenails grow long, it creates more places for the fungus to grow.
If you want to do more than that, over-the-counter lacquers similar to nail polish are available that you can put on your toenails. Those treatments help keep the fungus from growing. Your physician also can prescribe a product that contains antifungal medicine that you apply once or twice a day to the nail to help eliminate the infection.
Elderly Nail Fungus: Prevention And Early Treatment
You may see ads publicizing laser treatments for toenail fungus. I usually don’t recommend them. They tend to be quite expensive, and at this time most medical insurance does not cover that type of treatment.
In some specific cases, I do suggest a more aggressive treatment plan for toenail fungus. If you have unstable diabetes or if your immune system is compromised — you have HIV, you’ve had a transplant or you’re undergoing cancer treatment, for example — then you need prompt treatment for a fungal infection. If left unchecked, the fungus may be able to spread to other parts of your body and make you quite ill.
Treatment in these situations usually involves the topical medications mentioned earlier, as well as an oral antifungal drug, such as terbinafine or itraconazole. These drugs help a new nail grow free of infection, slowly replacing the infected part. You typically take this type of drug for six to 12 weeks. But you won’t see the end result of treatment until the new nail grows in fully. With this treatment, it may take several months or more to completely eliminate the infected nail. — Dawn Davis, M.D., Dermatology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.
How Exactly Did You Cure Your Own Toe Nail Fungus? I Already Looked Up Supposed Cures Online And Several Do Not Work.
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What Is The Fastest Way To Get Rid Of Nail Fungus
Toenail fungus isn't a pressing problem. Yet a fungal infection can ruin the appearance of your nails and cause pain as it lifts the nail away from the nail bed. And fungal infections are notoriously difficult to get rid of. Most often, you should consider fungal toenail a condition to be managed rather than cured.
Onychomycosis, or toenail fungal infection, is an invasion by a microscopic organism that thrives in warm, damp environments. Fungal spores are in the air, and they will grow if they land on a receptive surface like your toenail. They feed off the nail tissues, burrowing into the skin under the nail. Over time the nail thickens and may lift off the nail bed as fungal debris accumulates. Once your nail is raised off the nail bed, it won't reattach, and a new nail won't grow from that part of the nail bed. However, your nail will continue to grow from the root at the base.
A number of conditions can masquerade as fungal infections. Age alone thickens and yellows the nail. Psoriasis can cause the nail and the surrounding skin to flake. Injuries can create bruising under the nail. Even the chemicals in nail polish can discolor the nail. But you don't want to wait until your toenail is gnarly and raised off the nail bed. You should see a care professional as soon as you notice your nail changing.
Thick Toenails: Pictures, Causes, And Home Treatments
Only a lab test on a scraping from your toenail can show for certain that fungus is responsible for your nail distortion. Misdiagnosing toenail fungus can cost you time and money trying over-the-counter products that won't have an effect.
There are a myriad oftreatments for fungal infections, which vary widely in cost and effectiveness. To be fully effective, the antifungal drug has to penetrate the nail and often the nail bed as well.
Over-the-counter products.Antifungal preparations that are applied on and under the nail with the same type of brush used for polish are widely available. They might improve the appearance of fungal nails, but are not an effective way to cure the problem. No one product is clearly superior.
What Causes Toenail Fungus?
Prescription topical treatments. Effective products include efinaconazole (Jublia), tavaborole (Kerydin) and ciclopirox (Penlac). All require daily applications, and it may take as long as a year to see noticeable improvement. These products may work for early, superficial fungal infections because they kill fungi on the surface of the nail. Filing down the surface of the nail may enable them to penetrate more deeply into the nail or the nail bed. In studies, their cure rate averaged around 35%.
Oral medications.Itraconazole (Sporanox) and terbinafine (Lamisil) eliminated the fungus in 10 months for 55% to 70% of people in the studies required for FDA approval, but for 15% to 20% of users, the fungus returned within a few months. Either of these drugs can harm the liver, so your doctor will check your liver function at the beginning of treatment and again after six weeks. Itraconazole also interacts with a number of other drugs. If you take one of these drugs you'll also need to avoid drinking alcohol and stay out of the sun. If you have diabetes, vasculitis, or another condition that could be worsened by fungus, these medications might be a good choice, but otherwise, the benefits may not be worth the risks.
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