How Often Should You Apply Antifungal Solution To Nails

Fungal nail infections are common. They're not serious but they can take a long fourth dimension to treat.

Bank check if it's a fungal nail infection

Fungal nail infections commonly affect your toenails, but you tin can become them on your fingernails, too.

Fungal blast infections sometimes start at the edge of the smash.

The infection often spreads to the eye of the nail, making the boom discoloured and sometimes thicker in parts.

The nail becomes brittle and pieces tin can break off. Sometimes the whole smash lifts off. This can cause pain and swelling in the skin around the nail.

Diabetes advice

If you take diabetes, you should run across a foot specialist (podiatrist) because any human foot injury or infection can pb to complications of diabetes.

A pharmacist can help with fungal nail infections

Speak to a chemist if the expect of your nail bothers yous or it's painful.

They may suggest:

• antifungal nail foam – it can take upwards to 12 months to cure the infection and does non always piece of work
• smash-softening foam – it'due south used for 2 weeks to soften the nail so the infected office tin be scraped off

The infection is cured when you see healthy nail growing back at the base of operations.

Find a pharmacy

Not-urgent advice: See a GP:

if a fungal blast infection:

• is severe and treatment has not worked
• has spread to other nails

Information:

Coronavirus (COVID-19) update: how to contact a GP

It's still important to go help from a GP if y'all need it. To contact your GP surgery:

• visit their website
• use the NHS App
• call them

Find out about using the NHS during COVID-nineteen

Treatment for a fungal nail infection from a GP

A GP tin can prescribe antifungal tablets. Merely before they give you tablets they should have a sample of your nail and have it tested, to find out what type of infection you have.

Yous may demand to take antifungal tablets for up to half-dozen months.

The tablets tin can accept side effects, including:

• headaches
• itching
• loss of taste
• feeling sick and diarrhoea

Y'all cannot have antifungal tablets if you're meaning or have certain conditions. They tin can damage your liver.

Badly infected nails sometimes demand to be removed. It's a pocket-size process washed while the area is numbed (under local anaesthetic).

Other treatment

Laser treatment uses laser to destroy the fungus.

You'll have to pay for it as it'south non covered by the NHS. Information technology can exist expensive.

There'southward little bear witness to evidence it'south a long-term cure every bit about studies only follow patients for 3 months.

Preventing fungal smash infections

Fungal boom infections develop when your feet are constantly warm and damp.

You're more probable to get an infection if you lot wear trainers for a long time and have hot, sweaty feet.

To prevent fungal nail infections:

Practise

• care for athlete'due south foot as soon as possible to avoid it spreading to nails

• continue your feet clean and dry

• wear make clean socks every twenty-four hours

• wearable flip-flops in showers at the gym or pool

• throw out sometime shoes

Don't

• do non wear shoes that make your feet hot and sweaty

• do non share towels

• do not wear other people'south shoes

• do non share smash clippers or scissors

Page last reviewed: 15 Feb 2021
Next review due: 15 February 2024

Source: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/fungal-nail-infection/

Posted by: walkerhavoing.blogspot.com

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