What are ingrown toenails?

A: An ingrown toenail occurs when the toenail imbeds itself in the surrounding skin. This leads to the skin around the toenail becoming red, inflamed, painful, and often infected. An infected ingrown toenail makes it painful to wear shoes. It usually does not improve with antibiotics alone. In order for the infection to resolve, the offending nail must be removed from the skin.

The knee-jerk reaction that I see from most is the "do-it-yourself" approach. Many of my Houston patients decide that they have a future in "bathroom surgery" and dig out the piece of the nail. This usually causes the ingrown toenail to become worse. The only way to most properly and completely treat an ingrown toenail is to visit your Houston foot doctor.

Tanglewood Foot Specialists

1011 Augusta Dr. Suite 202

Houston, TX 77057

713-785-7881

Houston foot & ankle specialist Dr. Andrew Schneider offers sports podiatry, diabetic foot care, and treatment and surgery of all foot and ankle problems to residents of Houston Texas and surrounding areas. Contact us today for an immediate appointment.