Treatment of nail fungus takes at least six months and requires correctly prescribed therapy. Many people, especially on the eve of summer, are concerned with the question: how quickly will the nails return to their old healthy appearance? What will they look like immediately after starting treatment? And in a month or two?
In addition, the appearance of the nails can also determine whether the treatment is effective or not. Let's look at what you need to pay attention to when it comes to the appearance of your nails after fungal treatment.
Why is nail fungus difficult to treat?
Onychomycosis (fungal infection of the nail plate) is very difficult to treat in all people. There are three reasons for this:
The microbe penetrates the nail bed and not all local medications can reach it. In addition, most fungi offer "protection" in the form of a thickening of the nail plate.
In most cases, onychomycosis is accompanied by a fungal infection of the foot. And as soon as a person heals their nails, the fungus from the foot skin penetrates back into the nail bed.
Reinfection also occurs through your own socks, shoes and when bathing in the bathtub/shower.
Classic forms of treatment for onychomycosis
Currently, medicine uses three main approaches to treating nail fungus:
Systemic medications in the form of tablets or capsules. They can help, but for this they must be taken over a long period of time - from 4 to 18 months. All of these drugs are toxic to the liver; intake may be complicated by the development of diarrhea, skin rashes, and taste changes. Therefore, during treatment, you must strictly adhere to a therapeutic diet, stop drinking alcohol and regularly take blood tests - "liver tests".
Local remedies (creams, varnishes). They do not always penetrate the nail plate well. Therefore, it must be prepared in advance: cut off the overgrown masses of the nail with scissors or remove it with a cutter. You cannot do this on your own: you can damage the cells that make up the nail plate.
Combination therapy: simultaneous administration of a systemic drug and application of a local antifungal agent to the affected nail. It is used in severe cases to somewhat minimize the severity of the side effects of systemic medications. The effectiveness of such treatment is also not very high.
In some cases, dermatologists remove the affected nail plate before prescribing a topical treatment. Nowadays they try this less and less and limit themselves to filing the affected area - in order to avoid infection of the nail bed with bacteria.
It seems that onychomycosis can be left untreated, but in fact it represents more than just an aesthetic defect. It can lead to a serious mixed infection (fungal and bacterial) of the foot or hand, which can even lead to gangrene.
What do nails look like after fungal treatment?
In the first 2-3 months after starting to take local medications, the nail plate will not change noticeably. The fungi remaining in the subungual space continue to multiply and a thickening or, conversely, renewed thinning of the nail is formed. The growth plate retains its pathological color for some time: yellow, milky white, black or brown. It may still be scaly, ribbed or curved. There may be chips or an area where it is moving away from its bed.
When treated with tablets, pathological changes in the growing nail plate can be observed for less than two months. After treating the fungus, the area of the nail closest to the hole should take on a healthy appearance:
- become smooth;
- turn pink or reddish, uniformly colored;
- achieve normal thickness.
If the nail grows back after removing the entire nail plate, it has the right to become a little thinner. This is also an indicator of his health status.
If the nails remain changed in color, thickness or smoothness after 2-3 months despite treatment, the therapy must be checked.
How quickly does the entire nail heal?
It depends on the growth rate of the nail plates. It is influenced by:
- Age: the younger the person, the higher the speed;
- Type of diet: Insufficient intake of vitamins and microelements reduces nail growth;
- Ambient temperature: Nails grow faster in warm climates;
- Frequency of nail injuries: They slow down plate growth;
- Hormonal status: For example, during pregnancy, the growth rate of the plate increases;
- the presence of common chronic diseases: they slow down nail growth;
- Taking medications that affect the rate of cell division.
On average, after treating a fungus on the hands, a healthy nail grows in 6 months, on the feet in 12-18 months. The nails on the thumb and toes grow slower than others. So, if the nail plates on the 2-5 fingers of the lower extremities grow at a rate of 1 mm/month, on the first finger this rate is up to 0. 7 mm/month.
How to speed up the treatment of onychomycosis?
Laser therapy can be used to accelerate nail regrowth after fungal treatment. The nail plate is treated with a neodymium laser device with a wavelength of 1064 nm. Its radiation penetrates unhindered into the nail bed and heats the fungal cells there to high temperatures, causing them to die. In addition, the heat from the laser activates blood circulation in the nail bed, which accelerates the growth of a healthy nail plate.
Laser is used in conjunction with local therapy. After laser treatment, the patient should apply the recommended cream or varnish to the nails, and also carefully treat the shoes with an antiseptic to avoid re-infection.
The effectiveness of treating onychomycosis with a neodymium laser has been tested in several foreign multicenter studies. This is an excellent addition to local treatment, has a short procedure duration and is not associated with side effects.
Therefore, the growth of a healthy nail plate should begin in the first few months after starting treatment. It may be slightly thinner than usual, but has a uniform pink color and smoothness. The treatment process is significantly accelerated if the affected plates are treated with a neodymium laser.