Question
My 12 yr old daughter had an odd toe nail, but I thought she might have just inherited thickened nail from her father (His peel in layers). However, it has not outgrown normally and has a large ridge in it and now her toe is quite larger and longer than the one on her right foot; it looks deformed. Does she potentially have a serious problem here? It hasn't affected her walking as she may have had this a long while, but she never brought it up to me. When I put pressure on her toe to file the nail and the ridge, she said the pressure hurt a little. Could it be due to an old trauma of some sort that we didn't realize, or could it be more serious that I haven't been able to find any info on?

Answer
HI Tammy,

I would take your daughter to a podiatrist for an x-ray and examination of the nail.  They can tell you what is causing the problem.  It is likely nothing serious but I would have it checked.  There also may be fungus in the nail or just a ridege from damage to the nail from an old injury.

Sorry for the delay in answering.

Sincerely,

Marc Katz, DPM
Tampa, FL
Advanced Podiatry
www.thetampapodiatrist.com
www.tampacryosurgery.com



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