When it comes to foot problems, people tend to think that they only need to see a podiatrist if they have a fracture or a sprain. But one of the problems that you should not ignore is a nail avulsion. An avulsion refers to an injury that leads to the forcible detachment of a body part, in this case, your nail. Thus, the avulsion could be partial, or you could lose your entire nail.

Irrespective of the degree of the avulsion, it is crucial to visit a podiatrist so that they can determine how best to deal with the avulsed nail to ensure successful treatment. Thus, a nail avulsion also refers to the procedure employed to treat the affected nail.  This piece highlights a few of the things that you should know about a nail avulsion as a medical procedure.

What kinds of avulsions can you need?

Partial avulsion: This type of procedure refers to the removal of part of the nail, depending on how much of the nail has been avulsed. Take note that the damaged tissue beneath the avulsed part of the nail is also extracted during the procedure.

Full avulsion: As the name implies, this procedure functions to extract the entire plate of the nail since the whole nail is damaged.

When is a partial avulsion necessary?

Partial nail avulsions are usually carried out when the patient develops an ingrown toenail. The ingrown nails occur due to an array of reasons, such as genetic causes, fungal infections in the nail, ill-fitting footwear, trauma to the nail and trimming your nails in the wrong way.

If you find that you are suffering from an ingrown nail on a frequent basis, you may want to see your podiatrist and establish if you should get a partial nail avulsion. This is a minor procedure and entails the surgical removal of the offending part of the nail. Your podiatrist will then treat the remaining tissue at the surgical area with a specialised chemical to prevent the nail growing on that part again.

When is a full avulsion necessary?

Full nail avulsions occur due to severe ingrowth. But they can also happen if you have acquired excessive trauma to the nail or if your nails grow in a deformed manner. Before your podiatrist engages in the surgical procedure, they will administer a local anaesthetic to the toe that requires the full avulsion. Unlike partial avulsions, a full avulsion requires several weeks to heal. Moreover, you will have to visit your podiatrist to have the toe redressed and to have them check on your healing process.