Partial avulsion of toe nail - how bad can it be?

[RockinD]

Booked in for this on Monday morning and now getting very stressed about it.

I've been having routine maintenance on an involuted toe nail for nearly two years and the time has come to bite the bullet and have part of it removed.

Am I scared? Yes.

Please tell me your experiences.

Thanks

I've had both my large toe nails removed and it was fine. The worst thing is the anaesthetic which is an injection and does sting. One it's in, you can't feel anything after a few minutes and the actual surgery is a breeze.

If you have the nail bed treated with phenol to kill it, it can take about 6 weeks to heal and needs daily dressings, but a partial avulsion won't be as big so will probably heal faster.

Having my toes done has made a huge difference to me as the pain was making me limp, so it's definitely worth getting done

I could have written your post a few years ago and I'm willing to bet good money on the fact that once you've had it done and it's healed you'll wish that you had bitten the bullet sooner. I suffered agonies in the podiatrist chair whilst she attempted to solve the problem without removing part of the nail and in comparison the op was a doddle.

What hiddenhome says is true - the injection to numb the foot stings a little but the surgery itself takes next to no time and I honestly didn't feel a thing whilst it was being done or immediately afterwards. Although it wasn't advised I remember thinking that I could have easily walked home afterwards. Once the anaesthetic began to wear off I took a couple of paracetamol at four hourly intervals until I went to bed and a couple more before I went to have the dressing changed because someone had warned me that it might hurt a bit when this was being done.

Looking at my nail now, you wouldn't know that anything had been done to it and should I develop similar problems with my other toe I wouldn't hesitate to have the op again.

Hope all goes well or you on Monday.

I had a total avulsion 3 weeks ago, so much more severe than yours, I can now walk normally and could drive after 2 weeks. Not sure how long you won't be able to drive or bathe for (can only shower if I double wrap in bags!). I have to go to the practice nurse twice a week for a dressing change.

GA was fine, got over that quickly. Just have a good footstool at the ready as you will have to elevate your foot for a couple of days.

Had this done recently and all fine. It was actually fascinating and the worst past was the slight scratch of the LA. It's going to change my life and the healing is going well too. Good luck OP.