permanent toenail removal recovery time

long story short.... oral antifungal medication for a few months didnt really work. seems like toenail fungus is back. toenails thick and painful when climbing.

i am trying to decide if i should have them permanently removed now, or try to limp through another summer.

if anybody has had their big toenails permanently removed, how long was the recovery process?

thanks.

@ Russ

 Soccer?

I had an infected nail professionally removed, but it wasn't a permanent removal. It took me 4 full weeks before I could even imagine putting my foot in a ski boot - a climbing shoe was unthinkable for at least 6 weeks.

I have, but we'll before climbing. I didn't find the recovery bad, but I was 18. Was back to work and skating after a week. Still have small nails fill in from the sides that I pull with a pair of forceps or needle nose pliers every month or two

slim wrote: long story short.... oral antifungal medication for a few months didnt really work. seems like toenail fungus is back. toenails thick and painful when climbing.

i am trying to decide if i should have them permanently removed now, or try to limp through another summer.

if anybody has had their big toenails permanently removed, how long was the recovery process?

thanks.

Did the oral antifungal clear up a portion of the toenail, but the fungus came back? If so, you may not have taken it for long enough. I tried a six month course that cleared a portion of the nail but there was still old discolored nail that hadn't grown all the way out and been trimmed off. The fungus came back, perhaps from that part of the nail that was still harboring it. Then I did a 1 year course until the whole nail was clear from bed to trimmed end and was healed (hallelujah).

Crotch Robbins wrote:

Did the oral antifungal clear up a portion of the toenail, but the fungus came back? If so, you may not have taken it for long enough. I tried a six month course that cleared a portion of the nail but there was still old discolored nail that hadn't grown all the way out and been trimmed off. The fungus came back, perhaps from that part of the nail that was still harboring it. Then I did a 1 year course until the whole nail was clear from bed to trimmed end and was healed (hallelujah).

Any side effects from the oral antifungals?

Marc801 C wrote:

Any side effects from the oral antifungals?

IANAD. I believe you have to watch out for liver issues.

i took a 3 month deal.  it sort of cleared up part of the nail area and the doctor thought it looked good and that it would grow back out ok.  i think part of the problem is that my toenails have been hammered  for so long that even if the fungus fully cleared up it would easily come back.  

i think i am going to cancel my appointment and try to do it when the weather starts getting bad.  in the mean time i will just keep trying to file my toenails down as thin as possible and buy a big bottle of advil.

thanks everybody for the info.

I had both of mine removed as a track runner battling ingrown nails in high school. The recovery is only a few days(for pain) but they stay tender and feel.... strange for a bit longer. I would pull the bandaid off and just go for it. You’ll be happier in the end 

slim wrote: i took a 3 month deal.  it sort of cleared up part of the nail area and the doctor thought it looked good and that it would grow back out ok.  i think part of the problem is that my toenails have been hammered  for so long that even if the fungus fully cleared up it would easily come back.  

i think i am going to cancel my appointment and try to do it when the weather starts getting bad.  in the mean time i will just keep trying to file my toenails down as thin as possible and buy a big bottle of advil.

thanks everybody for the info.

In my experience you have to keep taking it until there's no more bad nail remaining on your foot. A little clear spot isn't enough.

I put a drop of oregano oil on my toenails daily when I got out of the shower and it killed the fungus and grew out after about 8 -10 months...compliance is key...cost is negligable...no specialists required.

I got the fungus from letting a friend borrow my climbing shoes 

Climbed the day after I had big toe nail removed. Didn't even think about it beforehand and just went with it. Throw some coban on it and call it good. Painful but not worth not climbing

I rip mine out with the back of a hammer (it's a nail puller right?) then yank the rest out with pliers.  Didn't miss a day if climbing and recovery wasn't that long. Let it dry out afterwards and you'll be golden.

yeah, i have been putting the tea tree oil on a couple times a day for a few years now (along with a couple other topical antifungal oils).  i think most of you are talking about temporary toenail removal right?  i am wanting to do the permanent thing, where they put the chemical oil on the toenail bed to basically kill it.  not sure if that makes a difference in recovery time or not - i would think it probably would.

I soaked in Epsom salt and then peeled off a (big toe) toenail once. I was back in climbing shoes within a week.

slim wrote: yeah, i have been putting the tea tree oil on a couple times a day for a few years now (along with a couple other topical antifungal oils).  i think most of you are talking about temporary toenail removal right?  i am wanting to do the permanent thing, where they put the chemical oil on the toenail bed to basically kill it.  not sure if that makes a difference in recovery time or not - i would think it probably would.

That is what I had done not for fungus but ingrown nails. Recovery time was really minimal and less future downtime from shitty infected toes

Glad I'm not alone.  My big toenails grow in thick and ridged.   I have to use those heavy-duty nail shears and trim them back to nothing.  It's ugly but its better than mangled dark nails that hurt in climbing shoes.   Not sure I want to compromise my liver for "good looking feet".

Julian H wrote:

Probably it is not worse for your liver than a beer or 6 pack a day. 

You clearly are not a medical professional.

Dow Williams (used to post here, maybe still does?) had his toe nails removed.  He seems to have been very enthusiastic about the procedure. Fully documented with pics here: summitpost.org/phpBB3/toena…

I picked up a toenail infection at the age of 18 in some gross showers on an army base while I had an open toenail injury with exposed nail bed on my big toe. I've tried a variety of topical treatments over the years but none have been particularly successful. I always lose motivation/discipline on maintaining the treatments after ~6 months and so the nail never completely clears up. As mentioned up-thread, it's definitely a marathon.  Luckily, it doesn't appear to be contagious. No one I've ever lived with (even the wife) has contracted it. Hell, it's never even spread to the neighboring toes over the 15+ years since then.

I also tried oral antifungals (Lamisil) a couple years back. Made it to day #55, toenail was about half clear, when I spontaneously lost my sense of taste. I called up the manufacturer and spoke to one of their medical staff. He recommended I stop taking it right away as I'm one of the lucky 2% who experience side effects relating to taste. Some people lost their taste permanently; I was lucky and mine came back after maybe 2 months.  The bigger concern is actual liver damage. It's also rare, but the unlucky few have suffered complete liver failure to the point of needing a transplant. It's quite uncommon, but far more serious than "a 6 pack a day."

I manage it by keeping it trimmed neatly and use a file to keep it thin. It no longer causes any pain or discomfort. It's just slightly yellow and discolored.

Julian H wrote:

Probably it is not worse for your liver than a beer or 6 pack a day. 

Drinking beer doesn't require regular tests of liver function. You don't know what you're talking about or you're just being facetious.

I was completely ready to get all my toenails permanently removed as the fungal infected toenails cause alot of pain while climbing.  The podiatrist said while he can permanently remove the toenails (and has performed this many times), he doesn't encourage it and said keep them filed down and apply tea tree oil.

He said that if he removes them the pain will go away for a few years but usually patients will have more issues 5+ years down the road.

Can anyone here comment?  Anyone have them removed +5 years ago?  Are you still pain free while climbing?

Anyone have any recommendations on how to minimize toenail pain while climbing (no my shoes aren't too tight).