Onychomycosis
- Possible separation of nail from nail bed
- Buildup of white, green, yellow or black debris under the nail
- Discoloured nail bed and foul odour
- Whitening or yellowing of the nail
- Thickened and crumbling nail
- Numbness, tingling or pain
Paronychia
- Redness, pain and swelling
- Abscesses (pus-filled cavities) may form
- Duration is usually acute but chronic paronychia has symptoms lasting more than six weeks
- Symptoms usually occur at the side of the nail fold
- Occasionally the entire horseshoe of skin around the nail is involved
- Green colouration of the nail indicates a Pseudomonas bacteria infection
Ingrown nails
- Redness, swelling and tenderness
- Pain during walking or running
- Corners or sides of nails digging into soft tissue
Other symptoms can indicate a more serious underlying condition. The following are some common signs to watch for when examining your nails:
|
Nail appearance |
Potential cause |
|
White spots on nail |
Mild trauma; may indicate infection |
|
Thin, reddish-brown vertical lines under the nail |
Damage to blood vessels in nail bed |
|
Clear, jelly-filled bubble at nail base |
Cyst that requires removal |
|
Dark spots, streaks |
Injury; if no injury, melanoma (skin cancer) |
|
Pits, ripples, discoloration; crumbling and separation from nail bed |
Psoriatic nails accompanying psoriasis |
|
White nails |
Liver diseases |
|
Half of nail is pink, other half is white |
Kidney diseases |
|
Thick, yellow nails; slow growth |
Lung disease |
|
Nail bed is red |
Heart conditions |
|
Nail bed is pale |
Anemia |
|
Yellow nails, slightly pink at base |
Diabetes |
|
No nail, thick nail, curved nail |
Congenital deformities |
|
Triangular half-moon at base of nail, thumb nails partially absent |
Nail-Patella Syndrome |
|
Concave, spoon-shaped nail |
Plummer-Vinson syndrome |
|
Rough, pitted opaque nail |
Alopecia areata |
|
Horizontal white lines |
Abnormality in blood vessels beneath nail; may point to other conditions such as pellagra, Hodgkin disease, sickle-cell anemia |
