An ingrown nail forms when the corner or edge of the nail grows into the surrounding soft tissue. Other terms for the painful nail condition include onychocryptosis or unguis incarnatus. About 20% of GP visits related to foot and toe area complaints are due to ingrown nail infections.
Which is the best tool for removing ingrown nails
An ingrown nail is a real torture that can last for months, and if it is not timely treated, it can also lead to serious consequences. The causes for the development of ingrown nails are most often improper nail cutting, wearing tight and sharp shoes, or a hyper-growth of the peripheral tissue. Usually, the problem is identified after the nail starts pinching into the surrounding skin, causing both pain and discomfort.
Most often, the problem affects the toenails, less frequently – the nails of the other fingers or even the fingernails. Typically, the area affected is only on the one side of the nail. The first symptoms can include acute pain, swelling, and burning sensation. If you don’t take immediate measures, within 2-3 days the wound begins to secrete, and pus starts to form.
Best Ingrown Nail Removal Kits
We reviewed several ingrown nail removal kits, specially developed to eliminate and prevent ingrown nail growth.
Harperton Nippit
- Sharp and effective nail nipper
- Precision for both manicure and pedicure
- Easy and comfortable to use
Harperton Nippit – Precision Toenail Clipper is the best-selling product for toenail clipping on the market. People define it as very comfortable and easy to use, which are the most important features a nail nipper must have. There are almost 700 reviews about this product, 94% impressively positive.
According to customer comments, Harperton Nippit is great for clipping the edges of the toenails, which will prevent the future ingrown nails to develop.
Most of the comments below the product description are very similar to that one:
The Harperton Nippit Precision Nail Nippers are absolutely the best. They are sharp, cut cleanly, and are very easy to grip.
The negative reviews (only 1%) inform about individual cases when the toenail clipper has been broken after several manipulations with it. What is really impressive is that below every negative comment, the company manager offers a recompense:
“I’d like to send you a replacement Nippit, that has been thoroughly inspected for quality, at no additional charge to you.”
ZenToes
- Six gel toe caps
- Stretchy caps, suitable for all sizes
- Fits easily on the toes
- Latex-free, washable toenail protectors
ZenToes gel toe cap has great reviews on the Internet, claiming that it works within a week (which is actually a problem for some of the customers seeking for immediate effect). The toe cap softens the nails and makes them more flexible while prevents the nail to get infected.
You should just cover the nail with the cap. According to the product description, the design fits easily in shoes (the caps are very stretchy) while the slide-on cushion protects missing or ingrown nails, hammertoes, corns and other painful formations on the feet, formed due to rubbing. Most of the customers inform that the application is very easy. Many of the comments also inform that trimming of the nail became easier after application.
Negative reviews complain about the sizes of the caps:
“It’s a size small and it was way too big.”
So, before ordering this product, please, make sure you are choosing the most appropriate size for you.
CurveCorrect
- 10 transparent ingrown toenail braces
- Excessive nail curvature corrector
- Eliminates the pain within 3 days
- Proven effective
CurveCorrect is a set for fixing ingrown toenails. Its purpose is to correct the curve of the toenail if the problem has resulted from abnormal nail growth. The product is intended for the big toe, but there are many people who successfully treated other toenails or fingernails.
CurveCorrect is actually ‘toenail braces’ that can be very efficient even if the condition provokes pain and discomfort from a long time. However, customers should be persistent with this product and expect visible results within no less than a week or two.
„ In less than two weeks, a severely curved nail is 50% back to normal.”
A downside about CurveCorrect is that there is no video tutorial provided, so customers could only follow the instructions on the product description sheet.
MASSIVE BIZARRE.LY
- Professional-grade 5 piece ingrown toenail kit, made of stainless steel
- Maintains the good condition of your nails
- Precise and sharp instruments
- Competitive price
The difference between regular ingrown toenail tools and the professional ones is the precision provided. The professional instruments are used in pedicure salons, they are produced by high-quality materials and are usually more durable, compared to the regular ingrown toenail kits.
MASSIVE BIZARRE.LY kit offers professional instruments for nail care suitable for conditions such as ingrown nails. MASSIVE BIZARRE.LY has an impressive rating – almost all users rated with the highest score. Suitable for both finger and toenails.
Negative comments claim that the kit is not easy to use.
Zizzon Professional Toenail File
- Two-sided professional toenail file
- 100% dermatologist graded surgical steel
- Non-slip surface for easy gripping and precise manipulating
Zizzon professional toenail file has very good user reviews. Almost all of the comments are extremely positive. Some people inform that they had painful sensation while treating the affected area with the professional toenail file but after a couple of days their problem disappeared completely.
One of the critical reviews says:
„This tool is sanitary and the most effective method to tend painful ingrown toenails at home.”
Negative comments mark that the Zizzon ingrown toenail file is very sharp and it should be used with extreme caution.
SEKI EDGE
- Sharp blades with a wide opening cuts
- Smooth cutting motion
- Recommended for ingrown toe- and fingernails
- Suitable for professional use
Seki Edge nail nipper is a convenient and precise instrument, allowing you to easily cut off even the thickest nails. It is suitable for ingrown nail correction, as it provides sharp, yet smooth cutting motion. This design is made with curved blades that will make it easy for you to reach the affected area.
Seki Edge is a company with a century-old history in the modern technology field, creating the finest beauty and grooming tools.
Steering your every cut is really important in case you are trying to get rid of ingrown nails without experiencing any pain or discomfort. Seki Edge nail nipper comes with a plastic cutting tip cover, keeping the cutter closed and protecting the cutting tip.
This tool has more than 250 comments, 90% of which are impressively positive. People share their experience with their difficult nails, and how they successfully managed to reshape the ingrowing nails.
MAYKI Ingrown Toenail Tools
- Japanese hand-made tool for ingrown nail removal
- Kit contains toenail nippers, a file, scissors, and a nail lifter
- Suitable for tough ingrown nails
- Durable, premium manicure and pedicure kit
MAYKI is a provider of corrosion-free pedicure kits, made of stainless steel. The ingrown toenail kit, which has a lifetime guarantee, consists of 4 instruments: toenail nipper, scissors, nail lift and nail file.
This is all you need to give yourself a great, cost-effective pedicure at home.
Reviews are very positive. A mother who purchased the kit for her son shares the instruments available in it are ‘durable enough to serve for years’. All the customers who wrote reviews regarding this Japanese ingrown toenail correction tool define it a high-quality product.
[/mks_accordion_item] [/mks_accordion]Tseoa Manicure and Pedicure Kit
- Chinese toenail clippers kit
- Sharp and durable instruments
- Suitable for both toenails and fingernails
- Designed for both left or right-handed persons
Tseoa nail care tools are specially designed for the management of ingrown nails, suitable for both toenails or fingernails. All the instruments available are made of stainless steel, they have an ergonomic design for avoiding potential injuries and have anti-slip and effort-saving handles, making every procedure easy and comfortable. The instruments work very well on thick nails and hardened cuticles.
The double-side lifter helps reshape sharp nail edges and the curved ends, which often provoke enormous pain and discomfort.
The online performance of this pedicure kit is indeed promising, there are even people who saw more benefits, compared to the expensive pedicure salon procedures.
For less than $10 you get 12 precise tools, which will help you forget about all the painful experience of having ingrown nails.
FAQs about ingrown nail removal
In case you would like to remove an ingrown fingernail or toenail at home, you should know that the ingrown nails require timely care. The procedure should be performed within the first days when you experience discomfort.
After cutting and cleaning the area affected, however, you must be very stubborn and persistent with the nail, which will regrow and start causing the same problem if not treated properly.
However, if you have tried multiple methods but the condition of the affected nail does not improve within 2-3 days, it is highly recommended to visit a podiatrist. If the affected nail causes infection, even an abscess (paronychia) [1] can be formed.
Specialists even recommend tightening a little cotton piece through a toothpick. The aim is to raise the nail and change the direction of its’ growth so that it won’t affect the surrounding tissue anymore. The cotton may be soaked in olive oil or vaseline to soften the skin.
Here’s how to properly perform the procedure of reshaping the ingrown nail:
Ingrown toenail correction tools usually consist of nails lifters (to lift the nail piercing the surrounding skin), nail clippers (to cut the thick, curved and ingrown nails) and nail file (to remove debris or dirt inside the nails). All the tools required can be used safely and painlessly during the ingrown nail removal.
This rarely happens as an ingrowing nail means a nail that has already started to pierce the surrounding skin. As the nail continues to grow, the experience becomes more and more uncomfortable, even painful.
Soak your feet for 5-10 minutes in Epsom salt water, and then wipe them thoroughly. When diluted in water, Epsom salt breaks down into magnesium and sulfate. These ingredients are proven to reduce both pain and inflammation while flushing toxins out of the body.
On SkinPractice, you can find various at-home foot soak recipes, we recommend choosing one, containing anti-inflammatory ingredients.
Both ingrown toe- and fingernails can be a source of intensive pain. This is due to the fact that the nail pierces the skincare skin, which leads to inflammation, swelling and puss accumulation in the area.
After a successfully eliminating the problem, the pain may still exist within the next couple of days (until the skin is completely restored).
Yes. In fact, most people notice the existence of ingrown toenails after they have started developing an infection[2]. The multiplication of bacteria under the skin surface (damaged by the nail overgrowth) is the reason why this condition is related to pain.
The infected area rapidly starts swelling and accumulates pus, which should be then extracted carefully.
On the one hand, there is the physical discomfort an ingrown toenail may provoke. On the other, there’s the risk of developing severe, potentially dangerous infection, which, if not treated in time, may lead to serious consequences, including:
- Injuring your toenail
- Developing a severe infection
- Fungal infection
- Partial or complete toenail removal
No, there are no risks of developing cancer, due to an ingrown toenail infection.
In very rare cases a complication, due to performing pedicure to remove an ingrown toenail may lead to amputation. An infected ingrown toenail should be accompanied by other severe conditions, usually left untreated.
If you or your podiatrist take timely measures to treat the infected area, there should be no risks of amputation.
There are several rules you should follow in order to avoid the development of an ingrown toenail:
- Avoid cutting the nails too short and cutting unevenly at the corners
- Leave the nail tip slightly longer than the fingertip
- Don’t cut the side parts of the nail
- Choose comfortable footwear – the socks and shoes you choose should provide a sufficient distance between the fingers and the sock/shoe
- Avoid traumas, caused by walking, running or the like
- Try walking barefoot if possible
- Avoid wearing high heels or cowboy boots
Every kind of infection can spread if left untreated. If you continuously neglect the painful sensation and discomfort the tiny, sharp toenail edge causes, do not get surprised if the entire nail gets infected.
References
1.PARONYCHIA NAIL INFECTION
https://www.aocd.org/page/ParonychiaNailInfe?
2. Managing infected ingrown toenails
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1472971/
Last update on 2024-04-14 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
