What is Hapalonychia and what causes it? Hapalonychia is also known as ‘eggshell nails’. A person with this condition will experience symptoms of thin, soft curved and brittle nails. The condition effects the nail matrix and the nail bed. Causes of Hapalonychia include malnutrition, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic diseases such as Raynaud syndrome, some medications and, also …
What are nail grooves / depressions and what causes them? The condition renders to the changes in the nail matrix and nail bed, which can be damaged or affected chemically, biologically or mechanically. Whilst slight vertical grooves / depressions on the nail are normal and highlight the ridges of the nail bed, there are certain …
What are hangnails and what causes them? Hangnails are either a small spike of nail within the lateral nail folds or, more commonly, a torn piece of skin adjacent to a fingernail or toenail. It used to be the case that we defined a hangnail as a piece of skin but a reanalysis of the …
What is Hyperhidrosis and what causes it? Hyperhidrosis is also known as ‘excessive sweating’. The condition is caused by hyperfunction of the sweat glands. It can appear in any area of the skin, but most commonly on the soles of the feet and in hands. The exact cause of Hyperhidrosis is still unknown, but scientific …
What is nail clubbing and what causes it? Nail clubbing is a deformity of the nails, which is unlike Koilonychia, and strongly associated with heart and lung pathologies, as well as with arthropathies. The exact cause of nail clubbing is still unknown but the nail bed is affected. At the later stages of the condition, …
What is Chloronychia and what causes it? Chloronychia, also known as ‘greenies’ or ‘green nail syndrome’, is a condition where green, greenish-yellow or greenish-brown spots appear on the fingernails. This is usually due to water being trapped between the natural nail and artificial nail enhancements, or when nail antiseptics are ignored during the preparation step …
What is nail biting and what causes it? Nail biting is also known as Onychophagia which derives from the Greek word ‘phagos,’ meaning ‘to eat’. It is the condition when someone bites his/her own nails, and occasionally their cuticles. The condition can be a precursor of a nail tic if not treated in time. Stress …
What is Pterygium and what causes it? Pterygium is a disorder that occurs by an overgrowth of the proximal nail fold on to the nail bed. In severe cases the nail plate is eventually replaced with scar-like tissue. The condition typically effects the nail matrix, nail bed and nail plate but sometimes all parts of the …
What is Onychocryptosis and what causes it? Onychocryptosis is also known as ‘ingrown nail’, is a painful condition where a portion of the nail (typically a toenail) grows into the soft tissues of the nail folds, damages them and causes severe inflammation. In many cases a secondary infection occurs when the skin barrier is injured. …
Onycholysis What is Onycholysis and what causes it? Onycholysis, the separation of the nail plate from the nail bed, can be a painful condition. It is caused by the nail bed responding to an irritation an allergen or mechanical damage by creating keratinous structures and cornifying nail bed epithelium. This separates the nail from the …
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