routine podiatry
Routine Podiatry is the care of your toe nails and skin conditions, there are many conditions that affect the toe nails and skin structure / integrity.
Toe Nail Structure
- Nail Plate - the hard part of the nail itself
- Nail Matrix - the area from which the nail grows
- Lunula - the white moon shaped area at the base of the nail
- Nail Bed - the tissue on which the nail plate lies
- Nail sulcus / groove - the groove down the side of the nail
Routine podiatry is very important if you have any of the following
- Diabetes
- Poor circulation
- Vision impairment
- Reduced mobility
- Lower back problems, knee or hip replacements
- Thick brittle toe nails difficult to cut
- Fungal nail infections
- Risk of ingrowing toe nails
- Painful corns or callus ( hard skin )
- Dry cracked skin
- Arthritis
- Peripheral Neuropathy
- Dementia
Elderly
Elderly people experience deterioration in strength, co-ordination, flexibilty or eye sight and may experience difficulty in attending to their own feet, and should seek podiatry care and advice regarding footcare.
Diabetics can experience changes to the circulation in their feet and nerve function termed neuropathy, it is important that they seek podiatry care and undertake a foot risk assessment recommended by Diabetes UK.
When you should seek podiatry treatment
- Notice any changes in the colour or shape in any of your toenails
- A toenail starts digging into the side or becomes an ingrown toenail
- Redness, pain or swelling around any of your toenails
- Develop a freckle or pigmentation under a toe nail
- Bleeding or discharge from under the foot
- Painful hard cracked skin
- Painful corns
- Thick hard skin
- Unusually skin rashes on your feet
- Itchy scaly skin blisters and splits inbetween the toes
