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I bet some of you lot have had some nasty fungal nails in your times!
My big toe has been infected for the last 18 months or so. I’ve tried the paint on and file off over the counter treatment which didn’t seem to touch it. Since then I’ve been trying to cut it as short as possible and file it back loads, and have been applying tea tree oil religiously. But its not going away.
How have you cured yours?!
Thanks!
Terbinafine tablets, go to doctor get a prescription take for around 90 days
It's a long haul
Milese.
Sounds disgusting - get it sorted.
I don't think you should be cutting your toe nails as short as possible. See a qualified person about the problem.
Currently on Trebinafine after trying all the over the counter remedies, none of which worked!
I would second (third) terbanafine (sp?). As a bonus, if you get a bit of athletes foot every now and again (fungal toes are often associated with athletes foot) it’ll absolutely nuke that too and you’ll end up with lovely feet again. If there’s such a thing…
I paid rather a lot for a laser treatment because of the bad press about the terbafine tablets.
It worked and was only 5 sessions but unfortunately it’s come back and I’m not paying again.
I've got one too, and did the tablets but it came back quickly. The paint on stuff irritated the surrounding toe. The whole nail fell off once and it looked like it would grow back clear, but no.
I'm considering dremeling the nail thin with a small abrasive stone, then getting some more paint on stuff but without the irritatation side effects.
I've used Curanail. You need to file the top of the nail thin and apply anti-fungal weekly. Keep the nail well trimmed too. Had some success. Not a fan of systemic antifungals for long periods.
I had a real nasty dose on both my right hand finger nails and toe nails that got left too long during lockdown. Was prescribed a 90 day course of Terbinafine. Had a liver function test before starting and at 30 days as it can cause damage to some people. It absolutely nuked the infection and now have all my finger nails back perfect and the last bit of the toe nail is growing out so flip flops can be worn this summer! Don’t mess around, get to the G.P.
I’m considering dremeling the nail thin with a small abrasive stone, then.....
Before getting your toolkit out and engaging in experiments on your feet have you considered seeking the advice of a chiropodist?
A chiropodist friend recommends using Vics Vaporub.
Another one on Terbinafine. Certainly does the trick. Hoping it stays gone.
GP didn't seem wildly keen on prescribing for what was essentially cosmetic reasons, but I had read it can cause issues if you just leave it. Plus it does look pretty minging.
I tried the laser treatment last year for my toe nails. It was about 4 nails that had been problematic for approx 8/9 years.
It took 6 laser sessions to cure the problem. So far so good and now can wear flip flops again, which has been a blessing.
To me at the moment it was worth every penny. Or £80 per session.
Get one of the electric nail files off ebay, around £10, just like mini-dremels. File nail down as much as possible, then put neat bleach on the affected nail. Do that every week, and the bleach 2 or 3 times a week, and it went away for me. Obviously make sure you dont have a reaction to the bleach by testing a small area first.
Had the same, did all the usual stuff, creams, painting stuff on, sanding , tea tree oil etc....all of them did bugger all.
Went to docs, put me straight on terbinafen once they found out I'd tried everything else, also sent a nail sample away for testing.
Took about 5 or 6 months for it to completely clear because the nail had to grow out whilst at the same time the fungal infection was being treated.
Tests came back to confirm it was indeed a fungus and that I wasn't wasting time with the medicine.
Not come back in 2 years so whatever it was is gone thank god as it was bogging and made me surprisingly self conscious.
Support runner at the celtman .... Lost 8 of 10 toe nails including both big nails..... Fungus be gone.
Mine was painful and ugly so I went to a chiropodist. She's a lovely old dear, and she explained the fungus causes the nail to grow thick which is why she trims it, files it down and puts a bit of Savlon on the hurty bit.
I asked for remedies, she said the stuff you get from the pharmacy is as useless as it is expensive, the stuff you get on prescription can cause heart issues, but Vicks Vaporub works for some people. (See turmudgin above - no connection)
I've been putting a bit on the nail daily for 6 months and it works for me.
I lost the nail a few years back, but it grew bac with the fungus.
Before getting your toolkit out and engaging in experiments on your feet have you considered seeking the advice of a chiropodist?
Nah, it's my toe and I'm pretty damn accurate with it.
electric nail files off ebay, around £10, just like mini-dremels.
Boom, there you go. I'll just use the real deal!
I had what I assume to be athletes foot for a while,
Here's what worked for me:
Common sense-- keep feet dry at all times and washe & dry feet and change socks/shoes if you get a bit sweaty.
Fresh socks religiously every day, no exeptions, twice a day if nessesary.
Once you've dried your feet (immedialty after a shower, for example), powder your feet with baking powder/sodium bicarbonate.
Took a while to clear so you kinda have to build it into your routine for a few weeks.
12 years. That's how long it took me to fix my big toe's nail that had a fungal infection.
I eventually cured it by cutting it ever shorter, and filing it ever thinner, until I could get underneath and dig the infection out. This was not painless, nor pretty.
The cursed thing had just grown back and was looking normal when I began my chemotherapy. Two months after chemo had finished and the dammed thing lifted off the nail bed. More gritted teeth-time to remove it.
I hate that nail.
I'm one of the lucky people that gets your toe nails in the lab to try and grow your fungus. You would not believe how many we get (although, judging by this thread, I guess it's not really surprising we get so many!) And no matter how bad yours are, I guarantee I've seen worse in the lab!!
I’m one of the lucky people that gets your toe nails in the lab to try and grow yourfungus
I have often wondered what the point of that is, are there really multiple species of toenail fungi and identification is necessary for the correct anti-fungal treatment?
Otherwise it's not exactly difficult to diagnose nail fungal infections, what else on a toenail looks as gross as a fungal infection?
Weak solution of potassium permanganate (dip a wet match tail to get a similar amount as the match head) in a small sink bowl of warm water, soak for 10 mins.
Clears athletes foot and fungal nails.
Three courses of Terbinafine now and no improvement.
The most recent course saw me end up with some side effects from the meds so I stopped them.
The Vicks suggestion sounds interesting, I may give it a go.
Took me years on terbinafine on and off, but every 4-5 months or so, just as the nail was virtually grown out and good, the fungus seemed to spread to the bottom again. When GP said ' this is the last try ' I doubled down on curanail as well, putting it on slightly more often than weekly as I knew if it wasn't working as I'd get a dull ache under my mail before the infection spread. So I learnt to treat with curanail every 5 days. My nail would lift off the bed so I cut it really really short and treated the bed with antifungal spray daily too. I also thought about reinfection and chucked out several old pairs of shoes and treated any others with antifungal spray. I kept at the curanail for several months after the nail seemed fine. I've been fungal free for errrr 6 -7 years I think, after having it far longer. I keep the curanail in the cupboard and if I get that ache under the nail I treat it for a couple of weeks and it seems to work for me.
I also wear good footwear pretty religiously now. Hardly ever wear trainers, only wear rubber soled boots or shoes if it's wet out and wear full leather shoes as much as possible. My feet breathe much better and I hardly ever get athletes foot anymore either, whereas I used to keep that at bay with continual use of cream.
Oof, sounds grim folks. Is it painful ?. Only ask as had issues with my toe nail growing back since I broke my toe 18 months ago - the nail fell off after about 6 months but it's been growing back badly, and getting infected - edge of nail keeps cutting into skin at side of nail. I'm slowly getting on top of it.
Otherwise it’s not exactly difficult to diagnose nail fungal infections, what else on a toenail looks as gross as a fungal infection?
My aunty died of skin cancer that started under a toenail and was mistake for a fungal nail infection. So the test isnt neccesarily to confirm that what looks like a fungal infection is one, but to rule out it being something else.
I think the danger of self diagnosis is thin case is the reputation that nail infections have for being difficult to treat is if you think its fungal, and its not, and treat the symptoms like you would a fungal nail infection - and the treatment dissent work. (Because its not fungal). Given you half expected it not to work you don't then suspect anything else might be going on
Yes, as above a negative result is often as useful as a positive.
The vast majority of positive cultures are one species in particular, but very rarely it can be something unexpected which might require different treatment.
There's also a requirement for us to report to UKHSA for epidemiology.
Compared to all the other sample types we handle, toe nails are relatively labour intensive and take a long time to return a result, which is of relatively low value in most cases.
We scrape the nail with scalpels, take a bit of that powder and soften it with KOH, then inspect down a microscope for fungal hyphae. It's also put onto agar plates and incubated, can take 3-4 weeks to grow something and we have to manually identify it once it does, no fancy tech for that (yet.) I actually quite like doing it, it's pretty satisfying when you get a good crumbly one. 😜
How have you cured yours?!
Got some pliers and a boxcutter and lifted the rotten part up and cut it off. Moderately painful, but a few beers took care of that. It grew back again nice and healthy. I posted some pictures on here a few years ago but there was an intensely negative reaction, no sympathy at all, just hateful comments. With hindsight, mumsnet might have been a better place to have posted them.
The vast majority of positive cultures are one species in particular, but very rarely it can be something unexpected which might require different treatment.
There’s also a requirement for us to report to UKHSA for epidemiology.
Fairy nuff. I asked because my GP once remarked that he could send off a sample for analysis but as far as he was concerned there was little point as he had no doubt what it was.
I have often wondered what the point of that is, are there really multiple species of toenail fungi and identification is necessary for the correct anti-fungal treatment?
Fungi are kinda new to science, as in they've never really been researched to the extent things like bacteria and viruses have.
They are not plants, or animals, they are kind of thier own biological spur in evolution.
This is a really cool documentary: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8258074/
https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/81183477
Not Fungi, but this is an equally fasinating documentary:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001hqth/the-magical-world-of-moss
What about dunking your foot in a basin of really salty water?
What about dunking your foot in a basin of really salty water?
That should work, assuming you dry the foot properly afterward... like a foot-spa type thing. The salt will help kill the nasties, but moisture is also your enemy.
Try soaking your feet in a bucket of bleach. That might work.
Or shining a really bright light.
I might be getting mixed up with COVID-19 cures though.
Try soaking your feet in a bucket of bleach. That might work.
Or shining a really bright light.
I might be getting mixed up with COVID-19 cures though.
Not very helpfull...
There's a reason saline solution (salt water) is a good mild general disinfectant to have in a first aid kit, and also the reason toilet duck bleach isn't.
Does it kill 99.9% of germs though?
Does it kill 99.9% of germs though?
Perhaps you should jump in the sea and find out? heheh, sorry I couldn't resist... sincerely no offence intended, but salt water is actually a good disinfectant for minor wounds, eye wash, etc.
I just wouldn't extract it from the beach in Blackpool, safer to make your own.
Maybe a regimen of immersing your foot in salty water, combined with tea tree oil?
https://www.healthline.com/health/tea-tree-oil-for-nail-fungus#recovery
Maybe just a tiny amount of detergent (fairy liquid) too, just to help the salt and tea tree oil to penetrate.
Tea tree oil, as in the proper essential oil (not the some crappy cream from Boots) is actualy quite vicious stuff... smells loveley but acts like paint stripper on skin. Use with caution.
After decade plus of attempts to stop the growth and regrowth of fungal nail on my right big toe, I got it removed in October last year, professional NHS person but in essence pliers pulling out the toenail.
No issues with fungal toenail subsequently.
Apple cider vinegar, I know, I know but hear me out. Use it topically on your nail and have a splosh in some water to drink. I have some every morning with my Vit D pill. Got rid of my manky nail in a few months.
just wouldn’t extract it from the beach in Blackpool, safer to make your own
Maybe THIS is why we get so many toe nails in at work, our sea doesn't work as well as everyone else's! 😜
Interesting reading. I have some on a couple of toes, I tried treating it with a paint on liquid, and it grew out a bit but never truly cleared.
It came back a bit, I try to keep it trimmed as much as possible but it doesn't really bother me so haven't been arsed to do anything else with it.
I have had a fungal infection on the first two toes on one foot for years. After trying the paint on stuff with zero effect, I have had two course of terbafine from the GP. Each time it seemed to work brilliantly but just as the remaining infected nail was almost grown out it started to spread again at the base. I am considering asking the GP for another go but assume the same is just going to happen again. So frustrating and makes me very self conscious about taking my socks off!
I was like that for a few years. It didn't bother me so I didn't worry. However it started to ache a bit, then enough to annoy me, and I was suspicious it might have started to spread to another toe, so I got on with treating it. It is hard to shift but I suspect it's easier to shift if treated sooner so I'd suggest get it treated.
we have to manually identify it once it does, no fancy tech for that (yet.)
no MALDI-TOF ?
<LAZORS, baby !>
This thread would be much better with some photos so we understand what is actually considered bad.
Lovely stuff MSP.
Seems like people respond differently to terbinafine - it definitely cleared mine in one big toe but it was slow AF. 8 months iirc and then one of my liver enzymes got elevated so I had to stop. Some remnants were left and it's slowly coming back. Don't fancy another long sesh of terbinafine so should investigate some of the home-brewed remedies posted above.
Finally, I've found my people!
I to, am a carrier of the dreaded toe fungus.
Thought I'd shifted it with some stuff from the chemist but it's come back again..
Thankfully mine isn't anywhere near as manky as that freak show MSP! He wants that foot hacking off 😂
My 2 big toes looks like that...and a third has gone funny as well - all 3 started after dropping rocks on the toes (although the 3rd one might have been the handle of a wheelbarrow!). Pretty sure my nailbed is beyond repair in the 3 toes. Have had Terbinafine treatment for almost 2 years and it made no difference.
Got a referal to a foot specialist coming up and I suspect I might be offered toenail removal - assuming that will then leave the exposed stuff to be dealt with.
Classic male feet - sweat like mad, frequently wear soggy footwear for extended periods i.e. the whole day and I suspect my daily foot washing with occasional extra washes and sock changes aren't enough to do anything.
My 2 big toes looks like that…and a third has gone funny as well
You are Jake the Peg and I politely decline my Rolf Harris signed copy.
This thread is great. After a lifetime of running and 1000s of hours of wearing wet cycling shoes my toes make @msp look like a supermodel.
I've always taken the view that if I'm going to have a truly disgusting body part (as opposed to just offensive like the rest of me) then I count my lucky stars it's the bit that is the furthest from my face.
So I've just ignored them. It was a useful filter when dating too... Like me, Like my toes.
I like the nails when they grow into a sort of high pyramids shape/ arch to the point where the Clippers don't open enough to get around the beasts.👍 The nail forms the "roof" with a kind of dry/ crumbly underside/interior that's neither nail nor dead tissue.
I've a couple like that and it's a joy to go get the snips I use for bike stuff/ DIY and hack at them. Its actually bloody therapeutic. Mentally anyway.
no MALDI-TOF
Yes, but we haven't got the fungi add-on installed! Although apparently when we trialled it it wasn't very reliable. There's a couple of us keen to give it another go though.
The maldi broke recently, the newer staff were completely stumped!
My prob is the end joint on the right index finger. Due to cutting it off in a machine accident years ago and having it stitched back on it means the nail hardly grows and its nearly open at the back. Recently it keeps getting an infection, and im wondering if i should ask about having that last joint amputated.
Would make braking a bit problematic, but what can you do.
I try not to look at me toes. They're akin to something out the lord of the rings hobbit like.
This is the thread for me.
I've been on a journey with bad toenails for years.
It started with one discoloured toenail about 5 or so years ago. I went to the doctor's who took a sample to test for a fungal infection. It came back negative so I was told it was most probably just damage.
Slowly but surely it got worse so I went back and same again - tested and negative.
In the meantime I started to get psoriasis on the foot and got referred for that. Given a steroid cream and told to keep moisturised. That's ongoing and it periodically flares up but is mostly under control.
Still the nail got worse, to the point it was thick and impossible to cut - it looked grim. So I went to a podiatrist who filed it back and said get it checked again.
I started to see symptoms on other toes on the same foot. I'm convinced this is down to the podiatrist filing the original nail and that infecting the others....but that's most probably rubbish.
After the initial nail grew back just as bad I went to the doctor's and the put me on terbinafine.
I took that for six months and it did nothing. Doctor told me to stop taking it.
So as we speak I have a foot of not great looking nails. I'm convinced my finger nails are affected as they don't feel right though no sign of discolouring.
Bottom line it's horrible and I'm at the point of trying some of the suggestions on here as I'll give anything a go.
I'm going to try and get referred to a specialist.
I've decided the way to discourage the fungus is to wear shoes one size too small. There's not mush room for it to grow.
Also been on the journey for about 15 years. Started with big toenail on left foot and then spread. Did terbinafine early on and it sorted it for a year or so, but then it’s come back. I now just file it back as best as possible and treat with tea tree oil. It’s not going away, so it’s just a case of trying to keep my nails looking as decent as possible. Will try Vicks though, heard that a few times.
There’s not mush room for it to grow.
Genius 😂
Yup, fully paid up member of this thread!
Have the dreaded lurgi on most of my toes on both feet. Didn't do anything with them for years, started dabbling with the over the counter stuff a year or so ago, but have not been consistent. This thread has made me make a renewed effort!
Does footwear contribute? I mostly wear merino socks, with trainers, or Crocs (yeah, rock the socks in crocs look!) around the house! Would cotton socks and/or leather footwear help?
https://www.psoriasis-association.org.uk/nail-psoriasis My wife has psoriasis and bad nails
Yes leather shoes will help! It's a fungus just like athletes foot and thrives on warm and wet conditions. If your feet are excessively sweaty because you wear footwear that doesn't breathe well, like synthetic trainers or rubber crocs, the fungus will thrive. I used to wear cheaper shoes with rubber soles, my feet were sweaty and toe nails infected. Now I wear leather shoes with leather soles if it's possible, and my feet are fine and have been for years.
Salt water? discredited 30 years ago IIRC
Bleach - not on your skin please. Get proper advice
MSP- thats nothing. I've seen some real beauties in my time
I had the triangle pointy nails and all that business. Took 6 months of drugs to get rid of it, but been clear for a while now (+ 5 years maybe).
Salt water? discredited 30 years ago IIRC
Still curent advice on the NHS?
soak a gauze pad or cloth in saline solution
Presumably it's a good disinfectant in the absence or pure alcohol or anything better. And don't put your sweaty socks and trainers back on.
Its not an antiseptic tho or a duisinfectant- thats about minimizing tissue damage. a long time ago salt water was used as an antiseptic and that fell out of favour with the rise of evidence based practice
All I know is a lot of sunlight, sea water and avoidence of socks and plastic shoes clears my feet up in days rather than weeks or months.
I guess in this scenario it's all about staying dry and aired. If you put your feet back into manky trainers you're just going to re-infect yourself?
Thanks for all the replies and fungi-love!
I'm going to try some of this for sure....
Seemingly credible options (ignoring GP meds)
Curanail
Potassium permanganate
Apple Cider vinegar
Vicks vapour rub
Tea tree oil
I'm going to start with the Vicks as there is some in the cupboard!
I too have started on the Vicks, thank you Amazon.
It's a bit messy, I guess you just need to slap it on all over the affected bit?
Just wipe a bit of Vicks on. Don't need a lot. Do it after putting your contact lenses in though.
Using Vicks...after a week the toenails look a healthier colour, still fugly but looking slightly less vomit-inducing!
Mine look somewhat like MSP's after various over-the-counter remedies, long courses of Itraconazole (shifted it but it came back) and Terbinafine (no real impact) so this should be the ultimate test for Vicks...will report back...
I don't think Vicks will sort the nail, but it does seem to make them look a bit more presentable.