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The response to the question below was authored by Marc Mitnick DPM

Ingrown Toe Nail Surgery, Four Weeks Post-op And STILL IN PAIN

by Christine D.
(Nashville, TN)

I had surgery on an ingrown toenail four weeks ago. The surgery included the use of a chemical to kill the nail so that it would not grow back. The Dr who performed the surgery and nurse who assisted were very casual in discussing post-operative care, did not put me on an antibiotic, gave me no surgical boot - sending me home limping with my bandaged toe shoved into my shoe and told me that it would feel better in about two days. Ha! The first week felt like I'd been attacked by a nest of bees and stomped on by a horse. The second week the pain was a little less but the skin around the edges of my nail became inflamed and red. When I called the Dr. they said not to worry if I did not have redness going down my toe to the foot. Four weeks later I still have extreme redness around the edges of my toe, the incision is barely showing signs of healing, it still runs and bleeds occasionally and my toe frequently feels like it has been burned. In the middle of the night I regularly wake up to extreme pain, burning and stabbing and nerve pain kind of like a big giant tooth ache. I went back to the Dr. two days ago (saw his partner/wife) and she said that while it didn't look infected she agreed to put me on an antibiotic but that the appearance of my toe - even 4 weeks post-op was NORMAL! She basically ignored my complaints of pain and in the last two day since I was there, the pain, particularly the nerve pain, has gotten much worse. I don't know what to do. Am I having some kind of a reaction to the chemical used to kill the nail? Am I over reacting - as my extremely unsympathetic Dr. seems to be indicating? Should I go see a different Dr. or should I just give it more time?

Hi Christine,
Four weeks after the procedure your toe should be feeling basically fine. The problem with using a chemical to kill the 'root' of the nail is that most of these chemicals cause a chemical burn which have a tendency to drain quite a bit for a period of time, tho, usually not four weeks. If your diabetic or have some other health issues, the healing time can be delayed.
I personally think four weeks is way too long for having this kind of pain. Since you have not gotten any satisfaction from your doctor, seeing another doctor might not be a bad idea. Even though ingrown nail surgery is not major surgery, complications can arise and they need to be addressed.

Marc Mitnick DPM
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ADDITIONAL REFERENCES

Mayo Clinic

Johns Hopkins Medicine

MedlinePlus

Arthritis Foundation

University of Rochester Medical Center

Harvard Health

Drugs.com

American Academy of Pediatrics

Penn State Medical Center

National Institutes of Health

Columbia University Department of Rehabilitation

ScienceDirect

Stanford Health Care

Illinois Bone and Joint Institute

Mount Sinai Hospital

Institute for Chronic Pain

University of Florida Health

American Family Physician

Cedars-Sinai

University of Maryland Medical Center

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Seattle, WA

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Evansville, IA

Dear Marc

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Jackie

San Diego, CA

Dr. Mitnick, Just want to say thank you so very much for your quick response and very informative reply! After reading what you had to say, I called the doctor's office and was able to get in and see him the same day as my injury. Toe was x-rayed and luckily, it is not broken or fractured. Very badly bruised and will probably lose the toe nail. And although my toe and toe nail are still very black and blue and very sore, they ARE both starting to feel a little better. So again, thank you! I am so very happy that I came across your website. The service you provide is outstanding and immeasurable!

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Albany, NY

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location unknown

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Whichita, KS

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Boston, MA

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Colorado

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Colorado

Wonderful advice

by: Anonymous

This is the best site for foot problem info.

Thank you for this information. This description fits my pain and inflammation behind my 2nd toe perfectly.

by: Max

location unknown

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Canada

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location unknown

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Wisconsin

Thank you for your response. You have provided some great insight (to my question)....

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location unknown

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Renae

North Carolina

Many Thanks Dr Marc!
Thank you for your response. It sounds like a good plan to me. He did not cut the wart out first ...

KG

location unknown

Thanks again doc for having this website and we STILL need qualified Podiatrists in beautiful sunny Tampa Bay (Bradenton) Florida.

Bessie Mae

Florida

Dear Dr. Mitnick, Thank you so very much for taking your time to answer my question. You have greatly relieved my anxiety related to the continual tingly I feel in my feet. I will share your response with my podiatrist next week. God bless you for having this question and answer page on your website! Most gratefully,

Lynne T.

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Your webpage is excellent, I commend you on sharing your knowledge to the public.

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New Jersey

Thank you. you were more detailed than what others have told me they finally called from the last xrays and my son is now in a cast for 2 weeks he did have a fracture that was not noticeable.

a mom

location unknown

I have read your website and I have to admit that I am amazed at all the information that is on here. I have learned more than the three years I have been going to several doctors that I have seen!!

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Lenoir, NC

Thank you so much Doc for a quick and thorough response!

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Bellevue, WA

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Jodi

location unknown

Ingrown Toe Nail Surgery, Four Weeks Post-op And STILL IN PAIN

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