The Therapeutic Effect of Nail Splinting in Ingrown Toenails

Kim, Hwi Jun; Ha, Dong Ju; Sim, Woo Young; Lee, Mu Hyoung; Haw, Choong Rim; Kim, Nack In

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Ingrown toenail is one of the most common nail complaints. It occurs chiefly on the great toes, where there is an excessive lateral nail growth into the nail fold, leading to painful irritation, inflammation, infection, and growth of excessive granulation tissue. Many treatments have been described, but these classic treatment modalities may lead to severe damage of the nail fold or to frequent relapses.
OBJECTIVE
We attempted to evaluate the therapeutic effect of nail splinting which is a noninvasive therapy for ingrown toenails.
METHODS
A total of 64 patients(78 lesions) with ingrown toenails were enrolled in the study. The lateral edge of the nail plate including the spicule is splinted with a lengthwise-incised flexible plastic tube. The efficacy of nail splinting for ingrown toenail was assessed by analyzing the degrees of post-treatment pain and a recurrence rate.
RESULTS
1.The average age of the patients was 37 years old. There were 38 male patients(47 lesions) and 26 female patients(31 lesions). The right big toe was affected in 27 patients and the left big toe in 23 patients. Fourteen patients had both feet affected at the same time. 2.The pain all cleared in an average 2.3 days of treatment. Other problems such as redness, swelling and granulation tissue gradually decreased as time went by. 3.There was a 7.8% recurrence rate at six months after the procedure.
CONCLUSION
We recommend nail splint as an alternative to traditional treatment for ingrown toenail because it is simple and easy to perform, noninvasive, effective, well tolerated, and does not require any special equipment.