Can onychomycosis be treated with home remedies?

Onychomycosis is a common aesthetic problem. Its treatment is quite difficult, because the fungi are located inside the nail plate, which must be treated therapeutically in order to remove them effectively. There are very few methods that can deal with this without damaging the entire nail. Doctor Marek Wasiluk talks about the treatment of onychomycosis.

1. It is relatively easy to get infected with mycosis, which is why the problem affects many people
2. At the same time, treating the problem is not easy at all
3. When symptoms appear, the best solution is to see a specialist
4. More current information can be found on the Onet homepage.

Can onychomycosis be cured with home remedies?

Unfortunately, onychomycosis is one of the most difficult to treat. This is due to the fact that fungi are very primitive, underdeveloped organisms, but are therefore also very resistant to drugs. The problem with onychomycosis is that, to put it bluntly, the fungus enters the center of the nails. The nail is highly keratinized, i.e. its plate is hard, durable and impermeable, therefore it is very difficult to penetrate it with treatment, and our task is to penetrate it and destroy the fungi. So it is very difficult to cure it with home remedies. You can try, but I’d say only if the mycosis affects small areas and is a fresh problem. In other cases, we are unlikely to deal with it.

Can onychomycosis be treated orally?

There are several ways to penetrate the nail. You can use antifungal drugs, systemic and local. The main disadvantage of the first solution, i.e. taking medication orally, is that the nail is a dead part of our body. When taking a drug by mouth, we do it with the intention that it will reach the bloodstream and work in the place we want. The bloodstream, however, reaches only living structures, so it cannot reach the nail, only the place where the nail keratinizes. Oral treatment can therefore act on the nail matrix itself, if this is where the fungus is located, it may be able to achieve the desired therapeutic effect.

How is onychomycosis topically treated?

In the case of topical application of antifungal chemotherapeutic agents, the already mentioned highly keratinized nature of the nail, through which it is very difficult to penetrate, is a problem. Therefore, any antifungal ointments will not work – it is practically impossible to keep the ointment in such a place for a long time. The second commonly used means for topical application are various types of varnishes containing the desired drug. This type of solution is slightly more effective than the aforementioned ointments, because, for obvious reasons, the varnish stays on the nail much longer than the ointment. In practice, however, this type of treatment requires several months, and besides, the penetration of the varnish into the nail remains problematic. You should also know that the fungus is constantly renewing as the nail grows back. The chance that the use of varnish in this case can help us, mainly applies to people for whom the problem of mycosis is relatively new, have not struggled with it for years.

What is the treatment of onychomycosis with a laser? How long does the procedure take and what are the prices?

Laser methods are an alternative to the onerous and ineffective methods of fighting onychomycosis described earlier. It is currently one of the best methods of dealing with this problem. A device properly selected for the problem, with a well-adjusted wavelength and penetration depth, can work by damaging the fungi thermally. The nail is irradiated with laser light and the fungi inside are burnt out. The downside of this solution is that it is not a very pleasant procedure, but at the same time it does not last too long. The upside is that the nail itself is not damaged in any way during the treatment – the laser only destroys the mycosis inside. For the best results, it is necessary to perform several treatments (approx. 3-5) at approximately monthly intervals. The price of one treatment is: PLN 500-1000.

For the best results, when the mycosis is very advanced, it is good to combine different methods and adapt them to the patient. The effectiveness of combining lasers with varnish is practically guaranteed. The sooner we start therapy, the better. A very advanced problem is more difficult to treat. The effect of the therapy does not appear immediately. We will notice it only when a new, fungus-free nail grows in its entirety, it is difficult to accurately determine this moment, it is about half a year.

Can onychomycosis be treated with vinegar, garlic or tea tree oil? Such information can be found on the internet.

Definitely not. As I said, mycosis is very difficult to cure, because the fungus penetrates very deeply into the nail plate. I don’t know how vinegar, garlic or tea tree oil would get inside the plate. If anything, they can only have a delicate, superficial effect.

What specialist should you go to with this problem? How is onychomycosis treated?

It is best to go to a dermatologist or an aesthetic medical doctor who knows about laser therapy and has the right device to deal with such a problem.

Symptoms of onychomycosis

What are the causes of onychomycosis?

Fungus causes nail fungus, so originally, poorly developed, but also resistant organisms of Ringworm are favored by various diseases, such as diabetes or immune disorders.

How can you catch it?

Onychomycosis usually affects the nails of the big toes. Most often, we can get it at various types of bathing areas, beaches, swimming pools and saunas. This is a frequent unpleasant souvenir brought from holidays. It is favored by lowered immunity, including diseases such as diabetes.

How do I know the symptoms?

The main symptom of onychomycosis is its unusual appearance. As a rule, the nail becomes dull, its color changes to gray, slightly whitish or yellow. It can also have shape disturbances, unevenness, and in extreme cases it can start to soften and peel off. The best way to find out if you are actually suffering from mycosis is to take a swab or, in the case of nails, cut them out and examine them in a laboratory.

Are the symptoms in the arms and legs different?

Not. But it must be said that mycosis on the hands is extremely rare.

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