What is Paronychia ?
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M$3 Answers
Clinically
the nail fold bechomes red and swollen.
Subcuticular collection of pus appears later on with or without under nail extension.
type
Acute and Chronic
Treatment
Acute- Pus is released by incision on the nail fold and excision of the outer quarter of nail.
Chronic- Hands are kept dry and nail fold regularly dressed with antifungal ointment.
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M$Treatment of the infection is usually a topical cream or lotion. Mild cases can be treated with soaks and antibiotic cream, but most cases are treated with oral antibiotics.
http://www.naturasil.com/faqs/conditions.asp?cID=24&q=95
http://dermatology.about.com/cs/paronychia/a/paronychia.htm
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M$
Thank you for your comments. I will rectify my future approach towards questions related to medicine
@seshankrishnan Thanks so much for trying to help this user! Couple of important things for you to know when answers health related questions.
1. It is customary in Mahalo Answers to state at the start of any health related answer if you have any medical training. It's fine to answer a question without medical training by doing background research, but you want to just be extra clear with users that this information "is a starting point for their research" and that "I'm not a doctor and this information is based on TKTKTKTKT" (where TKTKTK is online research, personal experience, etc).
2. This answers seems to be entirely cut and paste from other sources. If you are going to quote another sources please state that at the start of the quote and put quotation marks around the sections that require quoting.
For example:
WebMD reports that migraine headaches "are caused by TKTKT, TKTKT and TKTKTKTK."
Again, thanks so much for getting involved in Mahalo Answers!
all the best, Jason
(founder and CEO of Mahalo)
ps - I'm going to vote this answer not helpful for now, but will switch that vote once you've correct the issues).
IMG
Paronychia Causes
Paronychias are most often caused by common skin bacteria entering the skin around the nail that has been damaged by trauma, such as nail biting, finger sucking, dishwashing, or chemical irritants. Fungus also can be a cause of paronychia formation, especially in people with recurrent infection.
Paronychia Symptoms
A paronychia may start as redness and swelling around the nail, called a cellulitis. It is most often very sore to the touch and, at times, may be a yellow-green color, indicating that a collection of pus has formed under the skin (called an abscess).
The most common symptoms are the following:
* Swelling
* Redness
* Pus collection
* Pain and tenderness to touch
When to Seek Medical Care
You should call your doctor if the redness extends beyond the skin around your nail or to the pad of the finger. This redness shows that the infection might be forming a more serious finger infection of the deep tissues of your fingertip, called a felon.
You should also call your doctor if an abscess is forming. An abscess requires drainage by a doctor. Opening (or incising) an abscess to drain the pus should not be attempted at home.
At the first sign of pus collection, you should seek medical attention for possible drainage. If you notice that the swelling and redness has extended down your finger or you are unable to move the joints of the affected finger, you need to go to a hospital's emergency department immediately. This condition may or may not be associated with fever or chills, indicating a serious infection.
Exams and Tests
Your doctor will examine your finger and decide how severe the infection is and what treatment is needed.
Paronychia Treatment
Self-Care at Home
Care at home includes warm soaks in a mixture of 50% warm water and 50% liquid antibacterial soap 3-4 times daily for about 15 minutes. This soaking should be done at the first sign of redness around the nail.
Medical Treatment
If an abscess (pus pocket) has formed, the recommended treatment is to drain the abscess by doing an incision and drainage procedure.
* Your doctor will most likely use medicine (such as lidocaine) to numb the entire finger first and then will open the abscess using a surgical knife (scalpel).
* Sometimes packing called a wick is placed in the abscess to allow it to continue to drain when you go home and to keep it from closing up and re-forming the abscess. The packing is usually left in for 24-48 hours.
* In extreme cases, infection can move under the fingernail and need partial or complete nail removal. Unless there is an extensive cellulitis, antibiotics are usually not necessary.
* Your doctor may or may not take a culture of the drainage to check for a bacterial infection.
* After your doctor has drained the paronychia, warm soaks are still recommended. Usually, antibiotics are only prescribed if the infection involves more of the finger than around the nailbed. It is important to follow up with your doctor in 24-48 hours to be sure that the infection is healing properly.
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
M$
@kevinbernard31 Thanks so much for trying to help this user! Couple of important things for you to know when answers health related questions.
1. It is customary in Mahalo Answers to state at the start of any health related answer if you have any medical training. It's fine to answer a question without medical training by doing background research, but you want to just be extra clear with users that this information "is a starting point for their research" and that "I'm not a doctor and this information is based on TKTKTKTKT" (where TKTKTK is online research, personal experience, etc).
2. This answers seems to be entirely cut and paste from other sources. If you are going to quote another sources please state that at the start of the quote and put quotation marks around the sections that require quoting.
For example:
WebMD reports that migraine headaches "are caused by TKTKT, TKTKT and TKTKTKTK."
Again, thanks so much for getting involved in Mahalo Answers!
all the best, Jason
(founder and CEO of Mahalo)
ps - I'm going to vote this answer not helpful for now, but will switch that vote once you've correct the issues).
Thanks Jason for your advice i will try to do as you have advised in future. Hope not to give u second chance to choose my answer unhelpful
I dont have any professional medical training and the above answer has been complied from emedicinehealth.com. As per emedicine.com Paronychia is "An infection that develops along the edge of the fingernail or toenail is called a paronychia (pear-ah-NIK-ee-ah). It is the most common hand infection and, if left untreated, can progress to a more severe infection of the entire finger or toe.
IMG
http://i430.photobucket.com/albums/qq28/kevinbernard31/Paronychia.jpg/IMG
Paronychia Causes
Paronychias are most often caused by common skin bacteria entering the skin around the nail that has been damaged by trauma, such as nail biting, finger sucking, dishwashing, or chemical irritants. Fungus also can be a cause of paronychia formation, especially in people with recurrent infection.
Paronychia Symptoms
A paronychia may start as redness and swelling around the nail, called a cellulitis. It is most often very sore to the touch and, at times, may be a yellow-green color, indicating that a collection of pus has formed under the skin (called an abscess).
The most common symptoms are the following:
* Swelling
* Redness
* Pus collection
* Pain and tenderness to touch
When to Seek Medical Care
You should call your doctor if the redness extends beyond the skin around your nail or to the pad of the finger. This redness shows that the infection might be forming a more serious finger infection of the deep tissues of your fingertip, called a felon.
You should also call your doctor if an abscess is forming. An abscess requires drainage by a doctor. Opening (or incising) an abscess to drain the pus should not be attempted at home.
At the first sign of pus collection, you should seek medical attention for possible drainage. If you notice that the swelling and redness has extended down your finger or you are unable to move the joints of the affected finger, you need to go to a hospital's emergency department immediately. This condition may or may not be associated with fever or chills, indicating a serious infection.
Exams and Tests
Your doctor will examine your finger and decide how severe the infection is and what treatment is needed.
Paronychia Treatment
Self-Care at Home
Care at home includes warm soaks in a mixture of 50% warm water and 50% liquid antibacterial soap 3-4 times daily for about 15 minutes. This soaking should be done at the first sign of redness around the nail.
Medical Treatment
If an abscess (pus pocket) has formed, the recommended treatment is to drain the abscess by doing an incision and drainage procedure.
* Your doctor will most likely use medicine (such as lidocaine) to numb the entire finger first and then will open the abscess using a surgical knife (scalpel).
* Sometimes packing called a wick is placed in the abscess to allow it to continue to drain when you go home and to keep it from closing up and re-forming the abscess. The packing is usually left in for 24-48 hours.
* In extreme cases, infection can move under the fingernail and need partial or complete nail removal. Unless there is an extensive cellulitis, antibiotics are usually not necessary.
* Your doctor may or may not take a culture of the drainage to check for a bacterial infection.
* After your doctor has drained the paronychia, warm soaks are still recommended. Usually, antibiotics are only prescribed if the infection involves more of the finger than around the nailbed. It is important to follow up with your doctor in 24-48 hours to be sure that the infection is healing properly."
Hey, it's you again! The guy with the doctor avatar!
DISCLAIMER: We don't know if this person is really a doctor (or playing one on the internets!).
Anyway, thanks so much for trying to help this user! Couple of important things for you to know when answers health related questions.
1. It is customary in Mahalo Answers to state at the start of any health related answer if you have any medical training. It's fine to answer a question without medical training by doing background research, but you want to just be extra clear with users that this information "is a starting point for their research" and that "I'm not a doctor and this information is based on TKTKTKTKT" (where TKTKTK is online research, personal experience, etc).
2. This answers seems to be entirely cut and paste from other sources. If you are going to quote another sources please state that at the start of the quote and put quotation marks around the sections that require quoting.
For example:
WebMD reports that migraine headaches "are caused by TKTKT, TKTKT and TKTKTKTK."
Again, thanks so much for getting involved in Mahalo Answers!
all the best, Jason
(founder and CEO of Mahalo)
ps - I'm going to vote this answer not helpful for now, but will switch that vote once you've correct the issues).