Goodbye toenails!

One of our DC had it done, a groove was channelled out of one side of the nail, done under an anaesthetic, so no pain, but tender for a few days afterwards.No more problems afterwards so well worth doing.Yes, I don’t see why you couldn’t drive on Tuesday.Good luck.?

My son had this procedure as a teenager. He wasn't driving at that age but he went to school the next day. You need to pay careful attention to dressing the wounds for quite a while but he has never been troubled again so it was worth it.

Best of luck Luckygirl. I was supposed to have both big toe nails off last year but life got in the way. I'm managing the ingrowing stuff by 5 weekly visits to the podiatrist - leave it any longer and it hurts a lot but so far, so good I'm avoiding infections.
Please let us know how you go on because I know it's on the cards for a future date.

I occasionally get an ingrowing big toe , I found a small gadget (it looks like an instrument of torture but it works really well. It only cost about a fiver If you search on amazon for ingrowing toe nail tool you should find it.

DS2 had both big toe nails removed after lots of trouble with them.
Recovery was very swift. Bizarrely , his DP also has had her big toe nails removed, then the dog had her dew claws removed. We were relieved to see their baby has all her correct toe nails when she was born! Hope all goes well Luckygirl.

Ouch!
No experience - but just wanted to say good luck

All my OH (ex-GP) has to say is that he used to love removing toenails!

I have an appointment with the nurse at the surgery to have the dressings looked at and changed on Weds.

TBH I almost wish they were removing the whole nail so I did not have to be bothered with them again - they are always getting infected.

Oh well - here goes - toes crossed!

A couple of years ago I had this done on both large toe nails i.e. the outer sides removed. I think it's called nail avulsion. Had to have dressings changed a few times and drove myself without problem.

I also had it done about 30 years ago. In theory the sides aren't supposed to grow again but in my experience they do eventually.

At present I just trim back any signs of growth from the nail bed when I give myself a pedicure. Only having a partial avulsion means it's still possible to wear nail polish

Good luck, I wouldn't hesitate to have it done again.

Well - that's done! Local has not yet worn off!

They have given me an after care leaflet that wants me to soak them in salt water every day for 8 weeks! - and she said I would not feel the benefit of it for a year!!!! Sounds weird to me. And not to shower or bath - she said the surgery nurse would tell me when I could - so I will stink no doubt.

I am having to wear sandals, so I am going to get cold feet!

Oh well - we will wait and see.

I have had this procedure on one big toe and it took a long while for it to heal. Sorry, but mine didn't heal for over a year.
I was. Ery surprised i had to have this done privately as the nhs in this area didn't cover it unless i was diabetic. Total cost one toe £500. Was this the same for you? I ask because i know i will need the other big toe done too.

Where I live in London the cost is £312 each toe but local anaesthetic and dressings are extra so I doubt if there would be much change per toe from £500.

Lucky, if you have to soak your feet every day, why can't you shower?

Well quite - the soaking is in salt water so I guess that is seen as being cleaner. I will talk to the nurse when she des the dressings on Weds.

The really bizarre bit is that they want me to soak my feet with the initial dressing still on and to squeeze it dry with a towel and leave it on - seems a bit strange when I would have thought the wounds needed to dry out. But hey ho!

Local wearing off now but just stings a bit - which it did before anyway.

Oh yes, the foot-soaking! Istr my son had to soak his feet in a solution of pot permanganate every day. He did bath/shower, though, as a 15yo boy not showering for weeks would be a major biohazard!

I think it improved pretty quickly for him and certainly not a year. Hope it's the same for you.

Ouch Lucky - I do hope it heals well.
I'd heard horror stories like silvers about people whose toes took 12 months to heal, a contributory factor to my decision to delay the removal.
Here in the NW its available on the NHS providing you fit the category for NHS podiatry treatment to your toes - i.e. diabetic/RA etc.

Mine was done on the NHS - I am not diabetic or aware of any other particular qualifying condition. GP referred me and off I went!

Lucky, hope the stinging is wearing off a bit now. Anyway, I am sending you a large in order that you get a decent nights sleep.

Mine was done on the NHS. All healed fully in about 6 - 8 weeks. Took showers as normal and just renewed simple dressings. Also could wear trainers as they have a generous toe box.

Soaked feet with dressings on as directed - and ....guess what!? - the dressings floated merrily away!

I happened to have some unopened iodine dressings from OH's ulcer, so have slapped those on with a finger stall over each and will hope for the best. Seeing nurse tomorrow.

They do not hurt - just have to stop 2 year old GS from treading on them!

Have a bath in salt water? I dab surgical spirit on my toes most days. Between toes to stop athlete's foot and around big toe nails to stop infection. Worked so far.

Silverlining - if it took yer to heal, did you go on with the soaking and dressings for the whole of that time?!

I am still doing this 5 weeks later and the toes still look unchanged - rimmed with dark scabby edging - sorry TMI!
I am not sure when I will know they have healed. They are giving me no pain. Did you (or anyone else who has had this done) keep on doing the dressings till it looked normal, or did you abandon all that at some point?

Thanks for your advice.

a year!