Ripped Base of Fingernail from Cuticle

Posted , 3 users are following.

Hi All, on Friday I caught the tip of a finger in my car window as it closed which has had the effect of levering the base of the nail from the cuticle. The base of the nail is now resting on the skin. The nail is still fixed each side. I have to admit that after the initial pain and throbbing its settled down and as long as I am careful not to knock it, its not hurting too much.

What I'm wondering however is whether this is going to resolve itself naturally by the nail slowly coming loose and falling off, or whether medical intervention is going to be required.

I've inserted images to help .

Thanks for any advice.

image

image

0 likes, 4 replies

4 Replies

  • Posted

    Keep it clean and it should be fine. You may need to put a fairly tight plaster/band aid on it just to stop that nail getting caught.

    It will be a fairly lengthy process for that nail to grow out,but it will resolve eventually.

    If it should start throbbing and looking red and swollen after a few days then thats when you need medical intervention as that may indicate an infection. If the redness starts to spread across the whole finger and then your hand, you definitely need some antibiotics.

  • Posted

    You need to put a small bandage on it, it will heal over time. It will be painful as it heals, it needs a bandage on it, and time will heal.

  • Edited

    I'm hoping this reply will pop this back to the top!

    Just over twelve months on this is what I'm left with - see photo.

    The gap closed gradually for a while but hasn't closed any more for months. The bit of nail at the bottom of the gap keeps braking off when its a couple of mm long.

    Any idea whether this will eventually grow fully, its a nuisance at the moment because the ragged nail at the top keeps snapping?

    Thanks for any advice.

    image

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