Why Nail Removal Isn't the Solution: Anatomy, Biomechanics, and the Real Risks Patients Don't Know About

What is a nail and why does a person need one?

The nail plate is not a decoration or an “addition to the finger”.

This is an element of the musculoskeletal system.

1. Protective.

   It covers the soft tissues of the distal phalanx—the blood vessels, nerves, and fingertip pad. Without a nail, the fingers are constantly injured, the skin cracks, and chronic wounds can develop.

2. Support and distribution.

The nail is involved in transferring the load from the finger to the metatarsal.

When we ride, especially when we push off with the thumb, the nail plate acts as a rigid shield that maintains the shape of the finger.

Remove the nail - the finger flattens out, the biomechanics and gait change.

3. Sensory.

Beautiful moment: the nail enhances sensitivity.

It helps distribute pressure more accurately, feel the surface, and the brain receives clearer feedback from the foot.

So the idea of "pulling out a nail and living without problems" is like "cutting off a bumper so as not to scratch it" and then wondering why everything starts breaking.

Why you shouldn't remove your nails to "cure ingrown nails"

Surgical removal is not a treatment for the cause, it is an injury that:

increases inflammation,

damages the matrix (growth zone),

changes the growth vector of the plate,

increases the risk of chronic ingrowth by 3-5 times.

95% of patients who have had their nails removed later return with deformation, voids, onycholysis and constant relapses.

Removal doesn't cure the problem. It creates a new pathology.

What is an ingrown toenail?

An ingrown toenail is not "an angry nail that decided to grow in" .

This is a conflict between the shape of the nail, the shape of the fold and the mechanics of gait.

Reasons:

wrong shoes,

traumatization,

narrow or curled nail,

increased pronation,

incorrect trimming,

genetic predisposition.

Ingrown nails are a consequence of deformity. Removing the nail doesn't correct the deformity—it actually makes it worse.

What happens if a nail is removed barbarically or surgically?

After removal the following is possible:

chronic pain when walking - the finger remains unprotected;

hyperkeratosis (the skin begins to grow like a “shell”);

matrix deformation: the nail grows in a wave, a pipe, a splinter, or stops growing altogether;

constant inflammation of the lateral ridges;

repeated incorrect ingrowth, but now it’s 10 times worse;

loss of biomechanical support -> disruption of the foot axis -> overload of the first ray -> pain in the knee and pelvis.

After removal, chronic dysfunction of the finger develops, which is much more difficult to correct than placing a brace on the original nail.

When nails are actually removed

There are only four legal indications, and none of them sound like: "so that it doesn't grow in."

1. Purulent inflammation with the threat of phlegmon.

2. Tumor processes (papillomas, melanoma, matrix tumor).

3. Total onychomycosis destruction, when the nail as an organ no longer exists.

4. Trauma with complete destruction of the nail plate and subungual bed

( And the last 2 points are not performed by tearing and surgical intervention, but with the help of podological cutters and instruments, which completely eliminates trauma to the nail bed and matrix, as well as pain )!

That's it. Period.

Why are correction systems needed and why do they work?

Correction is medicine, not cosmetics.

Staples and plates perform mechanical reconstruction of the nail:

change the angle of growth,

unload the side rollers,

stabilize the plate,

eliminate the conflict between the nail and soft tissue.

Correction is like braces for teeth.

Nobody pulls out teeth if they are uneven.

We do not treat the symptom, we correct the cause.

In simple words for the patient:

Removing a nail is like taking the roof off a house because a corner is leaking. It seems easier in the moment, but the consequences are worse than the problem.

The nail is part of the foot's structure. If it is removed, the foot loses protection, biomechanics, and sensitivity. And the underlying deformity will remain and return in an even more severe form.