Is it fungal?

Do you think you may have a fungal nail infection? Are your nails thickened or discoloured or are you embarrassed about their appearance? We may be able to help clear up a few misconceptions and give some tips on trying to help. One thing to remember is not all nails that present thick and or discoloured are fungal.

WHAT ELSE COULD IT BE

Thickened nails can be a result of injury. This may be a direct injury like stubbing your toe, or dropping a heavy object onto the nail. Or it could be related to many months/years of micro trauma like footwear touching the nail, running related nail stress or because your toe is actually turning under and your walking on the nail. All will cause natural thickening of your nails and at times discolouration.

Other medical conditions can be contributing factors to nail thickening. These include:

Psoriasis

Chronic Bronchitis

Thyroid Disease

Lymphoedema

Rheumatoid Arthritis

Lichen Planus

Chemotherapy

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF IT IS FUNGAL

We are able to carry out an accurate (97%) quick fungal nail test during a routine podiatry appointment. A sample of nail and some amount of dry skin from under nail will be removed and added to a solution at chairside. The Dermatophyte Test Strip works by a process known as immune-chromotography, similar to that used in a pregnancy test. A pink line occurs in the test strip to confirm the test has worked whilst the appearance of a purple-brown line below it confirms the presence of dermatophytes (fungus) in the sample.

• Easy to use

• Rapid results in just a few minutes

• No need to send nail clippings to a laboratory and await results

• Scientifically proven to give accurate and reliable results

• Can detect the presence of all the common dermatophytes in a small sample of nail

• Immediate diagnosis, allowing us to advise accordingly and treat the infection without delay.

TEST SHOWS A POSITIVE RESULT - WHAT NEXT

Treatment will depend on the extent of the current nail infection. Oral medication may be necessary and we will write to your GP to request if this treatment option can be offered.

Otherwise the Podiatrist will thin the affected nails down using a nail drill and advise you on daily use of an anti fungal spray and a regular six week check up for review and further drilling. In some instances we may be required to create small holes in the nails for the topical antifungal spray to penetrate to the skin under your nail. This is painless and very effective.

Give us a call for further information or to book an appointment

07549 559056

www.fitfeetpodiatry.co.uk

Alison Pettican

Fit Feet Podiatry Tonbridge TN9 1TL