Wedge excision of the nail fold in the treatment of ingrown toenail

Many treatment modalities of ingrown toenail are reported in the literature, often associated with unacceptably high recurrence rate. The authors present their technique, which aims at reducing the convexity of the nail fold. After complete removal of the nail plate and accurate debridement of the granulomatous tissue, a wedge-shaped ellipsis of skin and subcutaneous tissue, lateral to the affected nail fold, is removed. Approximation of the margins of the resulting defect determines eversion of the nail fold. One hundred twenty ingrown toenails were treated with the wedge excision of the nail fold at the outpatient clinic of the department of plastic surgery, Campus Bio-Medico University, Rome, Italy, between January 1998 and January 2002. Six recurrences were observed. In addition to the high cure rate, short postoperative pain duration, and morbidity as well as low risk of postoperative infection, the remarkable esthetic results achievable with this method are indicated.