One would have thought in this day and age, with between an estimated 3-10% of the general population (it being more prevalent in older adults, affecting up to 50% of people over 70), that there would be a wonder cure for nail fungus! But unfortunately there is not.
I tend to use / recommend Curanail (which is a topical antifungal nail ‘lacquer’). I would use my electric burr to thin down the nail, and make it porous (so that the Curnail can get right into the nail to fight the fungus), and then paint on the liquid. It isn’t cheap, being approximately £20 a small bottle, but it is the most affective treatment I have come across. Some people can get it on prescription, so if you are able to get free prescriptions, this is definfinitely the cheapest way of getting it. I would then ask my patient to apply the Curnail at home once a week (it comes with little nail files for you to use across the nail to make it porous). You can then come back to me every couple of months for me to treat them. The bad news is that this treatment takes up to a year to get rid of the nail fungus, as the whole infected nail needs to grow out (and this is how long it takes for the whole of one nail to grow out properly!)
The other option for treatment, which isn’t a perfect option, would be an oral tablet call Terrabafine. This can only be given on prescription, and it can have some nasty side effects for your liver, but it does tend to get rid of nail fungus much more quickly (it is different for everyone, but I would say in approximately 6 months).
The above are the two best methods I have come across for nail fungus (over the 13 years I have been a Foot Health Practitioner), but as you can see both have their pros and cons.
Do you have any questions about nail fungus? Do you have a nail fungus you would like me to treat? If so, get in contact and I’ll be able to help!
Speak soon
Nicola
