If the fungus doesn't go away at home, see a dermatologist (specialist in skin, hair and nails) or a podiatrist (podiatrist). Stronger medications may also be prescribed for you. You may be able to treat toenail fungus at home with certain essential oils and other products with antimicrobial and antifungal properties, such as Vicks VapoRub. This may be why many people try home remedies instead.
These are 10 of these home treatments. Vicks VapoRub is a topical ointment. Although it's designed to suppress coughs, its active ingredients (camphor and eucalyptus oil) can help treat toenail fungus. To use it, apply a small amount of Vicks VapoRub to the affected area at least once a day.
For the study, snake root extract was applied to the affected area every three days for the first month, twice a week for the second month, and once a week for the third month. Your doctor may prescribe an antifungal cream, such as efinaconazole (Jublia) and tavaborol (Kerydin). Rub this product on infected nails after soaking them. These creams may work best if you thin your nails first.
This helps the medication pass through the hard surface of the nail and reach the underlying fungus. Nail removal without surgery (a chemical is applied to the nail) The dermatologist can perform both types of nail removal in a doctor's office or clinic. With any of these procedures, the nail can grow back. However, if the infection doesn't go away, the dermatologist can treat the nail so it can't grow back.
While there are many treatment options, none are ideal. Medications that are applied to the nails have a low cure rate. Antifungal pills can cause side effects. Penlac (ciclopirox), Kerydin (tavaborol), and Jublia (efinaconazole) are among the top prescription drugs for toenail fungus.
Another study found that ozonized sunflower oil was more effective at treating toenail fungus than ketoconazole, a prescription topical antifungal agent (Xolegel). According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, some small-scale clinical studies showed that tea tree oil could be effective against toenail fungus. You can use hydrogen peroxide to fight infected toenail or toenail fungus with a clean cloth or cotton swab. Snake root extract, made from plants in the sunflower family, is an all-natural homeopathic antifungal treatment that is also used to treat toenail fungus.
If you have persistent toenail fungus or are in pain, you may need to schedule an appointment with a specialist. Home remedies may take longer to get rid of toenail fungus than prescription topical medications or oral systemic antifungals. If the natural remedies for toenail fungus listed above don't work, there are other effective toenail fungus treatments available at the local drugstore. Many people use essential oils to treat toenail fungus to avoid the side effects that prescription drugs can cause.
While home treatments may be the cure you're looking for to treat toenail fungus, they're not regulated or approved by the United States. Men are known to get toenail fungus infections more than women, as are people with weakened immune systems, people with diabetes, poor circulation and older adults. The most obvious symptom of toenail fungus can be discoloration caused by a white, yellow, brown, or even black toenail. A study found that ozonized oil is an effective home remedy for toenail fungus caused by certain strains.
Prescription oral antifungals, such as terbinafine (Lamisil) or fluconazole (Diflucan), are traditionally used to treat toenail fungus...
