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Infection after ingrown toenail surgery

enzina

Well-Known Member
Messages
289
Location
London
Type of diabetes
LADA
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
pain, being dependent, egoistic people & jealousy
On Thursday i went to see a nurse at my GP surgery and told her the toe is now much more painful than after surgery two weeks ago and it's throbbing so badly. I also feel very ill in general, the glucose levels are all over the place and even socks on my foot hurt me.

She said there is no infection..Over the weekend the pain got so bad, i could hardly sleep and nearly went to A&E. I planned on seeing the GP yesterday but then another drama unfolded. My 13 year old dog Cecilia has an infected toenail as well! She was limping for a few days and as i couldn't see anything wrong with the paws i believed she pulled a muscle. On Sunday night she started bleeding, one of her claws was hanging off. So we went to the vet yesterday. She had to be mussled, held by three members of staff but no luck. She needed general anestethic, she's such a wimp. I have spent several hours at the vet and was just too tired, too exhausted to see a nurse at my surgery.
Cecilia was whining, howling and even a bit growling the whole day, the half night.

Today it was finally confirmed my toenail is infected. I'm shivering, feeling horrible and have decided to cancel the next toenail surgery scheduled for early May. It's just too much, i'm trying so hard and have so many setbacks. I also miss exercising so much, my whole body is aching so much and i can't even think clearly.

Cecilia is very bossy, she wants the big sofa all the time and is giving me looks if i try to lie on it. Sorry about the rant.
 
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Don't worry, a god rant always helps.I am sure your toe was extremely painful and the problem with the dog will just have added to your misery.

I hope you are on antibiotics and the toe is feeling a lot better now. Big hug.
 
@enzina I am sorry to hear all this. There are few things less painful than a toenail infection. The good thing is you are now on antibiotics and it will improve but since the diagnosis was delayed you might need more than one course.
I think I commented on my experiences to you previously. I gave up on toenail surgery after twice on both big toes. I get my toenails trimmed by a professional every 4-6 weeks and I use Tea Tree oil liberally, it is a great antiseptic. Thats 3 years now and I havent had an infection since.
Shame the dog has the same problem!
 
@PenguinMum Thank you so much PenguinMum, you're so right! I have already cancelled the next surgery and will go private for alternative options.
Strange thing is, i got no follow up appointment for the infection but will just call the surgery again in a few days.
 
I had both my big toenails removed ( 25% removal of each ) by my then GP. Not both at the same time. The nurse insisted that I keep the wound dry at all times and was checked by her twice a week and then once a week until she decided it had healed. The wound was redressed by her approximately once per week. One time one toe was infected as I had got it wet. She went bananas at me. And was given antibiotics. Eventually of course the healing process was complete.

The surgery on the toenail wasn’t pretty. I was on holiday and had the wound checked over and I recall being told it was the worst piece of toenail removal she had seen.
 
Do you smother the toe nails in Tea Tree oil?
 
@Listlad after nail cutting I drop lots into the groove either side and if on occasions the skin around the nail is looking a bit pink I do it morning and night.
 
PenguinMum said:
@Listlad after nail cutting I drop lots into the groove either side and if on occasions the skin around the nail is looking a bit pink I do it morning and night.
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Thanks.

Last time I checked I had 10 toes so I guess it will take a little time to do them all. I guess it is worth it though. I have some very odd looking toenails just now.
 
Listlad said:
Thanks.

Last time I checked I had 10 toes so I guess it will take a little time to do them all. I guess it is worth it though. I have some very odd looking toenails just now.
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Sorry for the late reply....I only do the big toes as they were the only ones that got infected but you can do them all if you wish.
 

Get to Casualty if it gets any worse........also use your smartphone to take a picture on a regular basis so you have comparisons to view
 
PenguinMum said:
Sorry for the late reply....I only do the big toes as they were the only ones that got infected but you can do them all if you wish.
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Ah. Most of mine are infected, including the little toes.
 
Thanks @PenguinMum, that's a great idea, will take pictures from now on.
 
PenguinMum said:
In that case you should go to your GP...my suggestion about Tea Tree Oil is more a maintenance option.
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I have already seen him. I have to take him a nail clipping to prove it’s fungally driven.
 
Listlad said:
I have already seen him. I have to take him a nail clipping to prove it’s fungally driven.
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I would just say that fungal nail infections of the nail can be quite different from toenail infections where the nail bed seams are infected. I would still advise checking with your GP.
 

A good rant is good when it’s needed we all need to at times
 
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