Antifungal treatments are thought to be effective in treating around 60 to 80% of fungal nail infections. It may take 6 to 18 months for the appearance of the affected nail to return to normal and, in some cases, the nail may not look the same as it did before the infection. Many people do well with systemic medications, which are available by prescription. When you take a pill, the digestive system releases the medication and the circulatory system carries it to the network of blood vessels in the nail matrix that we talked about earlier. These types of medications can have side effects, ranging from headache and stomach pain to liver damage.
When taking a systemic antifungal, it is important to monitor liver function using regular blood tests. Nail growth is slow, which means that treatment is a lengthy process. Oral treatment for toenail fungus usually takes three or four months, but toenails may take a year or longer to return to to look normal. While foot fungus is fairly easy to treat, toenail fungus is incredibly difficult to get rid of, and in some cases, it never goes away, Sundling says, noting that even the best oral medication is only 70 percent effective.
According to an article published in the journal PLoS Pathogens, toenail fungus is very common in 14 percent of people in North America, and is more common as we age, Sundling adds. There is no treatment for toenail trauma, but removing the nail may be an option if the nail hurts. In addition, there may be several factors that could make a person naturally more susceptible to developing nail fungus. of someone else's feet.
In addition, keeping your feet dry and alternating shoes will help you prevent fungus from forming on your nails or feet from the start.
