No matter how well you take care of your injury, you might still get an infection. If your toe is infected you might see red streaks running up your toe, foot, or leg. You might get a fever of 100.4ºF (38ºC) or higher. Pus – thick, white or colored drainage from the injury – is another sign of infection. See your doctor if any of these signs occur, because infections can be serious. Your doctor will prescribe you antibiotics if an infection is present. Take these as prescribed and until they’re gone. See your doctor if your pain is severe enough to interfere with sleep or daily activities, does not improve 2 hours after taking pain medicine, or gets worse over time. If you have swelling that gets worse or does not improve after medicine, ice, and elevating your foot, get help. Ask questions like, "My toe hurts more today than it did yesterday and Tylenol isn't helping, is that okay?" or "How much swelling is normal?" Sometimes, a crushing injury to a toenail (like having a heavy object dropped on your toenail) can cause a subungual hematoma – bleeding underneath the nail. This creates a little pocket of blood under the nail, which can be uncomfortable because of the pressure. It looks like a dark blue, black, or purple bruise like splotch beneath your nail. If the bruise is less than ¼ the size of the nail, it will probably resolve on its own. Otherwise, see your doctor because you may need to have the fluid drained from under the nail to prevent further pain and injury. Don’t attempt to do this on your own or for someone else. See a doctor. Your doctor will drill a very small hole in your toenail to let the blood drain out. This procedure shouldn’t hurt, and draining the blood will make your toe feel better because it relieves the pressure. Whether your toenail will regrow normally depends on whether or not the nail bed was damaged. If you’re worried about how your nail might look when it grows back, speak to your doctor about the possibility of a small surgery on your nail bed. If you can see visible damage to your tissue around your nail, like any tears, see your doctor. If the nail bed or nail matrix are very damaged, your nail might not grow back or might look different – but some problems are fixable. It may take 6-12 months for a toenail to completely regrow. If you spend 15 minutes or more trying to scrub your injury clean, and you still see dirt or debris in it, get medical help. It’s really important to thoroughly clean the wound to prevent infection, so if you can’t do it on your own you need someone who can. Depending on how you hurt your toe, you might also need a tetanus shot or tetanus booster. If the cut is dirty and it has been 5 years or more since your last booster, then you will need a tetanus shot. If the cut is clean and it has been more than 10 years since your last tetanus booster, then you will need a tetanus shot. Many injuries that cause nail avulsion can also cause broken bones. Check your injured toe to see if it bends and straightens all the way. If not, or if it’s sticking out at an odd angle, it may be broken. Get emergency care for an x-ray and proper treatment.
اطلب الرعاية الطبية إذا ظهرت عليك أي من علامات الإصابة بالعدوى. زر الطبيب إذا زاد الألم أو الاحمرار أو التورم. اذهب للطبيب إذا تحول ظفرك للأزرق والأسود. زر الطبيب إذا لاحظت تلفًا واضحًا حول الظفر المكسور. اطلب المساعدة إذا لم تقدر على تنظيف الإصابة بنفسك. قم بعمل الأشعة السينية إذا كان الإصبع غير متحرك أو يبدو غريبًا.