Toenail Fungus Treatment in Thousand Oaks, CA
The area of the toes is generally warm and damp, unfortunately making it a great area for fungus to grow. If left untreated, the fungal infection can spread, which is why it’s so important to get professional help early on and look into your treatment options.
Fungal infections occur due to fungus getting through the cracks of the toes or cuts in your skin. Common signs that you may have a fungal infection include thicker than normal toenails, oddly shaped toenails, discoloration, a yellowish hue to the nail, and separation of the nail and nail bed. Fungal infections can affect anyone but are most common among men, those with diabetes or athlete’s foot, and smokers. The risk of having toenail fungus also increases as you age, if another family member has it, and if you have a weaker immune system.
Fungal Toenails Prevention Tips
To avoid getting a fungal infection, it’s important that you wash your feet daily with soap and water, making sure to get in between your toes, and dry the feet well. When cutting your toenails, make sure the clippers you’re using are clean and that you’re cutting straight across. It’s also important that you wear shoes in areas where fungus can thrive, such as wet public places like swimming pools or locker rooms.
Toenail fungus can also be treated with certain over-the-counter antifungal creams and ointments. To remove pressure from the nails, keep them cut at a short length. Oral antifungal drugs, medicated nail cream, or medicated nail polish may also be prescribed by your podiatrist if simpler treatments do not prove successful. In some cases, your podiatrist may also recommend laser treatment to eradicate toenail fungus.
Patients should visit their local podiatrist if they suspect they have toenail fungus. In its more severe stages, toenail fungus can become very painful. Other infections can develop from toenail fungus that can spread to other parts of the body. Upon examination for fungus, your podiatrist may scrape your nails if he or she finds debris. This sample will be sent to a lab to determine what fungus is causing the condition.
Laser Treatment for Fungal Toenails
Toenail fungus is notoriously difficult to cure with over-the-counter medicines. From foot soaks to ointments the efficacy of these is extremely varied, at best. 2010 the FDA approved the first laser treatment for toenail fungus. This was the first of the “cold laser” treatments to gain federal approval. The laser kills the fungus in and under the nail, ridding it of the infection.
The treatment itself is non-invasive and very straightforward. The podiatrist will move the laser in a grid-like pattern over the infected toenail. This is a virtually pain-free procedure that generally takes less than 30 minutes, though it could take longer depending on how many nails are infected. After the procedure, the appearance of the nail will not have changed. While the fungus has been killed, the nail will have to grow out in order to see the effect of the treatment.
Laser toenail fungus treatments are now used all over the world and can be performed by a podiatrist in-office. The number of treatments it will take to cure the fungal infection varies by patient and type of laser. Speak with your podiatrist to learn more about getting rid of your toenail fungus.
If you believe you’re experiencing a fungal toenail infection, we recommend that you speak with a podiatrist as soon as possible for a proper diagnosis and suggested plan for treatment.
Topical solution for Fungal Nails
Formula 7 is a topical anti-fungal containing Tolnaftate and N-acetyl-l-cysteine (NAC) which helps penetrate through the nail plate (and even through nail polish). It doesn’t work for everyone, but when it does work (as you can see in the photos below) the results are remarkable.
This patient began using Formula 7 in November ’18 and Cutera laser treatment every 3 months. Note the clean base of the nail where the healthy nail is growing out.
79 year-old woman using Formula 7 on her nails
A Clear Nails Pro Success Story
This is the left and right big toe nails of Amalia, a 58-year-old woman who had nearly given up on having her nails look pretty. She could not afford the cost of Jublia or Kerydin and her insurance company gave her a lot of trouble for even trying to get those medication approved. She started using Clear Nails Pro and here is how the toe looked after 11 months of daily use. If she keeps using it once or twice a week she should be able to keep it looking good.
Note – 11 months is not “too long” for a big toe nail that normally grows slow but grows even slower if it is infected with a fungus.
Clear Nails Pro at $50 is a good alternative to Jublia or Kerydin. It contains Ciclopirox, a prescription strength anti-fungal, terbinafine (also known as Lamisil) and fluconazole for yeast which sometimes also causes discolored nails.
