Access Dermatology

Types of Nail Disorders

There are several different types of nail disorders, but the two most common categories are:

onychomycosis, caused by infection with fungus or yeast;
onychodystrophy, including nail splitting, fragility or other abnormality, caused by an underlying inflammatory condition, such as psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, lichen planus, or due to trauma to the nails.

In addition to looking unsightly, nail disorders can cause pain and increase the risk of more serious infection, such as cellulitis in the affected area.

Treatment

There are topical treatments that can strengthen the nails and improve the appearance, including:

Genadur,
Ammonium lactate,
OTC nail conditioners.

If there is an underlying inflammatory condition, it must be addressed specifically with anti-inflammatory topicals, orals or injections. There are effective treatment options for each inflammatory condition.

If there is a fungal or yeast infection, it can be treated with topical or oral antifungals. Topical prescription options include:

Penlac (ciclopirox),
Jublia (efinaconazole),
Kerydin (tavaborole).

Topicals are used for 1 year, and are safe, but not as effective as orals.

Prescription oral medications include:

Lamisil (terbinafine),
Sporanox (itraconazole).

They are usually taken for 6 weeks for fingernail fungus, and 12 weeks for toenail fungus, and are more effective than topicals, but may cause stomach side-effects, and can rarely affect the liver, requiring blood test monitoring for safe use.

NAIL DISORDERS

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