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Toenail fungus is an infection of the nail plate by dermatophytes. This ailment is considered the most common form of fungal infection in humans, which often coexists with athlete’s foot. The disease most often appears in elderly people, after the age of 65. The cause of mycosis may be wearing too occlusive shoes.
What is onychomycosis of the hands?
Toenail fungus is a very common disease, infection of the nail plate by dermatophytes. Mycosis occurs most often in men after the age of 65 and is often associated with athlete’s foot. It is characterized by stinging and pain in the area of the affected nail and a change in its appearance. The nail plate becomes discolored, dull and thickened, and nails, which are hard before the disease, become brittle and split. Treatment of onychomycosis is based on topical and oral treatments.
Fig.4.40. Fingernail mycosis
The causes of onychomycosis
At the beginning, it is worth mentioning that onychomycosis is a much less common condition than onychomycosis. The ailment is caused by dermatophytes, most often:
- Trichophyton rubrum;
- Trichophyton mentagrophytes,
- sometimes mushrooms Candida.
Onychomycosis is often associated with dermatophytosis. It develops similarly to athlete’s foot in a warm and humid environment and in places that have been injured. The formation of mycosis may suggest that the patient has a significantly reduced immunity. It is worth paying attention to this aspect, because mycosis is a condition that likes to come back. In addition, the following factors contribute to the development of ailments:
- obesity,
- circulation problems,
- diabetes,
- anemia.
Fingernail fungus – symptoms
The clinical symptoms of onychomycosis are sub-plaque keratosis, loss of clarity of the nails and onycholysis (separation of the nail plate from the placenta). The nail plate becomes discolored and thickened. It changes its color to greenish, yellow or brown. Over time, the nail becomes brittle and brittle, and the nail plate may be completely destroyed.
Dermatophytes most often penetrate from the free edge of the nail or lateral nail shafts, causing distal and lateral subungual onychomycosis. Some patients may develop suppuration around the nail folds and peeling of the skin on the nail.
Other characteristic symptoms of onychomycosis are: stinging in the area of the nail and pain. There may also be an unpleasant smell.
There are several clinical varieties of onychomycosis:
a. DLSO – distal and lateral sub-plate onychomycosis,
b. PSO – proximal sub-plate onychomycosis,
c. WSO – white superficial onychomycosis,
d. EO – intraplatelet onychomycosis,
e. TDO – complete dystrophic onychomycosis.
Diagnosis and treatment of onychomycosis
Diagnosis of onychomycosis is based on mycological examination (confirming the type of fungus underlying the disease) and culture. A sample of the material is taken from the diseased tissue and then left with the medium for some time.
If we are dealing with mycosis – the fungi should multiply.
In the diagnosis of the disease, it is also important to differentiate onychomycosis from other diseases that may have similar symptoms:
- yeast infection,
- lichen planus,
- psoriasis (in the case of nail psoriasis, an effective care cosmetic is the EPTA PSO Intensive Nail Conditioner, which you can buy separately or in a Set with 30% urea for body and nail care with EPTA PSO 30.
Of course, onychomycosis must be treated, and the sooner treatment is initiated, the greater the chance of a quick recovery. In addition, onychomycosis makes the appearance of the hands very bad, which is what women complain about the most. Do not ignore the symptoms and cover the lesions with another layer of varnish – a visit to a dermatologist is necessary. Before any treatment is implemented, appropriate diagnostics is needed.
In the treatment of onychomycosis of the hands, the following are used, among others:
- various types of topical preparations with antifungal properties – sticks, varnishes, powders, gels, ointments; e.g. ciclopirox, amorpholine, kimbazole or trixolan. Before local treatment is performed, the nail plate should be thoroughly cleaned!
- oral antifungal drugs, e.g. naphtifine, terbinafine, fluconazole;
- aloe vera in the form of a gel for rubbing into the nail plate and the surrounding skin;
- topical medications containing urea – they help to dissolve the affected plaque;
- tea tree oil;
- nail compresses (especially when purulent discharge appears),
- nail dyes in the form of e.g. iodine.
If you have a problem with onychomycosis, try MYCOfast Nail Onychomycosis, which is available on Medonet Market with a free 20 files.
In the case of onychomycosis of the hands – topical treatment alone is unfortunately not enough. To be effective, the changes must be small and detected at an early stage. Most patients receive general treatment supplemented with local treatment.
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