Have Your Nail Bed Injuries Addressed at Orange County Hand Surgery Specialists!
When fingertips are injured or crushed in car doors, nail bed injuries can develop and cause discomfort to the rest of the fingers. At Orange County Hand Surgery Specialists, Dr. Ying Chi can expertly diagnose and repair nail bed injuries.
Contact Orange County Hand Surgery Specialists today to schedule a consultation at our office in Fountain Valley or Tustin, California, and alleviate your nail bed symptoms with double board-certified orthopaedic and hand surgeon Dr. Chi.
What are Nail Bed Injuries?
Nail bed injuries can vary and often include damage to the surrounding structures of the fingertips, such as bone fractures, nail bed cuts, and injuries to the nail bed skin, fingertip tendons, or nerve endings. These can be caused by a variety of incidents, such as catching the fingertips in a vehicle door or any kind of pinching, crushing, or sharp cut.
Nail bed injuries are commonly characterized by:
- A collection of blood, also known as a hematoma, underneath the nail
- Cracked fingernails
- Pieces of the fingernail or fingertip that have been torn off
- Possible injuries to the adjacent structures of the fingertip
How are Nail Bed Injuries Treated?
Before prescribing treatment, Dr. Chi will perform thorough testing including x-rays to assess the injury and determine if any surrounding structures of the fingertip were also affected. In cases of simple hematomas, a small hole is drilled into the nail and the blood is drained. Cuts are typically treated by straightforward treatment, but more severe injuries may require surgery to try and restore the functionality and appearance of the fingernail.
The process of restoring the nail bed to the fragments of bone on which it is attached requires a careful procedure, which may require bone pinning, nail bed grafting, or splinting depending on the extent of the injury.
What Results Can I Expect?
When nail bed injuries are straightforward and simple, full restoration and appearance of the fingernail is likely. It can take 3-6 months for a new nail to grow from cuticle to fingertip. More severe crushing injuries may result in nail bed scarring and residual deformity. The functionality of the affected fingertip after surgery depends on the extent of the injury. Your outcome will be discussed by Dr. Chi during your consultation at our Fountain Valley office.
Contact us today to schedule a consultation with Dr. Chi and have your nailbed injuries expertly evaluated and treated.
Figure 1: The anatomy of the nail bed and surrounding structures.
Figure 2: The anatomy of the nail bed and surrounding structures from a lateral view.
