HealthLink British Columbia: “Fungal Nail Infections.”Īmerican Podiatric Medical Association: “Toenail Fungus.”Īmerican Academy of Dermatology: “Nail fungus,” “Caring for nail infections.” 1, 2013.īotek, G., Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine, February 2003. Westerberg, C., American Family Physician, Dec. National Health Service: “Treatment for a fungal nail infection.” Mayo Clinic: “Nail Fungus,” “Tea Tree Oil.”Īmerican Academy of Family Physicians: “Paronychia,” “Fungal nail infections,” “Onychomycosis: Rapid Evidence Review.” Don’t go barefoot, especially in public places. Disinfect your bathroom tiles with bleach. Once you get rid of the infection, do your best to avoid getting the nail infected again. Both can be done in your doctor’s office or clinic. Your doctor will either remove the nail by putting a strong chemical on it or with surgery. This allows a new healthy nail to grow in, which can take more than a year. If other treatments don’t work or you’re in a lot of pain, your doctor may want to remove the infected nail. Laser treatments are also costly and usually not covered by insurance. We need more studies to know how well it works. High doses of light may help destroy stubborn fungus. What Are Some Other Treatments for Toenail Fungus? They may interact with other medicines you’re taking, such as antidepressants and beta-blockers. These pills are not usually given to people with liver disease or heart problems. Studies show that drugs like itraconazole ( Sporanox ) and terbinafine ( Lamisil ) work best to help a new, healthy nail grow in to replace the infected one. For a severe infection, your doctor can give you an antifungal pill that you’ll take for as long as 12 weeks. You may have side effects like redness, swelling, or stinging and burning when you apply them. Ciclopirox ( Ciclodan, Penlac, Loprox ).There are topical drugs that work to get rid of nail fungus : That can help the medicine work better, too. Your doctor may also suggest that you thin your nail first with a file or urea lotion. (It can also lessen pain by reducing pressure on your nail.) This can help the drug attack the deepest layers of the fungus. You’ll want to trim your nail and soak the area first. If you have a mild infection, your doctor can give you an antifungal skin cream or solution to rub into the nail or nail lacquer to paint on the surface of the nail. They can also prescribe stronger medicines. If your fungus doesn’t clear up at home, you should check in with a dermatologist (a skin, hair, and nail specialist) or podiatrist (a foot doctor.) They may gently scrape under your nail to get rid of some of the fungus or send it to the lab for diagnosis. Listerine or vinegar. Some report soaking the affected nail(s) in Listerine or vinegar for 5 minutes a day to dry out the affected nails.Ĭontinued Prescription Medicines for Toenail Fungus Still, it’s unclear how well this treatment works. Never take tea tree oil by mouth because it can be toxic. Because it’s a natural antiseptic, you can try applying this oil to your affected nail twice a day. For some people, it works about as well as a prescription antifungal cream. Snakeroot is a natural antifungal from the sunflower family. Swab a small amount on the nail every day. Some research has shown that a mentholated salve can get rid of a fungal infection. If that happens, you’ll need to try something else. Sometimes, an infection treated this way will clear up for a while, then come back. They’re not expensive, but often they’re not strong enough to get rid of the fungus. Some treatments that you can get without a doctor’s prescription might work well.Īntifungals. Your local drugstore has antifungal creams and lotions you can try. Best Over-the-Counter Toenail Fungus Treatment Sometimes you can get rid of a nail fungus without a trip to the doctor. A fungal nail infection (known as onychomycosis) isn’t pretty, but hiding it and hoping it goes away on its own won’t help.
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