Nail Assessment, Conservative & Surgery

What happens in a Pre-Nail Surgery Assessment?

Pre-nail surgery assessment takes up to 30-45 minutes

£45 new patients

£40 existing patients

Prior to any treatment as a Nail Surgery Specialist Podiatrist, I will complete a neurovascular assessment (I promise nothing painful) and examine the nail(s) as well as ask some questions around the development of the painful toenails.  The answer to these assessments and questions determine what sort of treatment may be best suited for you.

What is an ingrowing toenail?

An ingrowing toenail occurs when the nail grows into and pierces the surrounding skin.  The toe(s) may become red and inflamed and you may notice bleeding or pus coming from the area. It can be extremely painful and even putting your shoes on may become problematic.  Sometimes a toenail may not actually be ingrowing but there is some level of discomfort, this is usually caused by an involuted (curved) or fungal/thickened toenail(s) (known as a nail pathology).  Ingrown toenails and nail pathologies are extremely common and even a minor ingrown toenail can quickly become more of an issue, particularly if an infection takes hold.

What causes an ingrowing toenail?

• Poor nail cutting
• Picking your nails
• Tight footwear
• Injury
• Family history
• Sweaty feet
• Bony deformities

Regardless of how an ingrowing toenail starts, the treatment can vary from simple conservative management of the condition to more complex surgical procedures.

Early Podiatry intervention is particularly important to help reduce discomfort, pain and possible infection.

Conservative Treatment

Conservative treatment takes up to 30 - 45 minutes, the appointment (can sometimes be completed as part of the Pre-Nail surgery Assessment at no additional cost).

£45 new patients

£40 existing patients

Sometimes despite feeling pretty painful it may not look unpleasant and may require only trimming away a small section to help elevate discomfort and stop it ingrowing (known as conservative treatment).

If conservative treatment is unsuccessful, or the ingrowing nail / nail pathology (problem) is too severe, then the "Gold Standard" procedure of nail surgery with Phenolisation can be provided.   This has a high success rate to help prevent a return of your symptoms.

Nail Surgery

Nail surgery treatment takes up to 90 mins, the appointment (following a Pre-Nail surgery Assessment appointment) includes:

A local anaesthetic being injected into the toe(s), which allows me to remove the ingrowing (or problematic) section of nail painlessly. I then apply a chemical (phenol) to stop that part of the nail from growing back.

Your surgical package includes:

• Surgery for ingrown toenail(s) under local anaesthetic
• A supply of dressings (enough to support full healing )
  
• Up to 3 follow up appointments (if required)
• My PNA (Partial Nail Avulsion) guarantee to you: if the nail regrows, I’ll repeat the procedure once at no additional cost to you.

Nail surgery costs:

One Toe £325

Two Toes £380