Infected toe... any advice please?? *sigh*

[PinkRoxy]

Ok I had kicked my toe next to my biggest toe last week quite hard it wasnt broken or anything like that it just ended up bleeding a little nothing major so I wiped the blood away and it seemed to be ok.

A day or two later its really sore so I rub some crystacide into it which is suppose to be a really strong antibiotic cream and then put it in a plaster. Still sore the next day so refreshend it with more crystacide and another plaster and continued for a few days. Still sore so I filled a bowl with water and put a couple of lid scoops of dettol liquid in the bowl and soaked my toes in that, then covered with crystacide and a plaster.

It was looking all soggy but still sore and the wound was still there, today I thought I would air it out and wear jandals. tonight it looks disgusting with the sore covering halk my toe nail and it is red and hot. I soaked in dettol again and applied crystacide with a plaster.

Why wont this stupid infection go away? Ive done everything and usually it works and goes but apparently not this time.

Ok so I am out of ideas of what to do with this toe. Does anyone have anything they can share with me? It would be much appreciated thanks.

[oneofus]

Sounds like you may have the infamous in growing toe nail. Keep the nail clean, and open to the air ie don't wear socks, tights, shoes or whatever. But they cab be little devils too clear up, and very sore if you bang your toe.

You have my sympathy!

One of us

[Acidomoduso]

I suggest you just leave it to heal. If you kicked your toe hard enough to think you might have broken it then i suspect it has bruised and THAT is what you're experiencing.

I once was moving a dishwasher and it slipped backwards into my big toe - i honestly thought i'd broken it. I did that high pitched squeal that only bats can hear... it just looked like i was open mouthed, making no sound. The pain was something else. I hobbled to Outpatients and they checked it out - not broken, but they had to release the pressure in my toe. They drilled through the nail and released that pressure and i felt better. The nail was damaged but i didn't completely lose it. Only 6 months later did some of it drop off. It took about a year to heal completely.

My point? Hitting your toe can look like a simple thing but it can take ages to sort itself out. Stop putting the creams and dettols on it and just allow it to heal. You might have to be patient but it will sort itself out - if not, go to the docs and get them to look at it.

Hope it clears up soon.

[PinkRoxy]

Thanks.
I went to see a nurse today and she told me that it was infected but only in the toe nail as it was all turning red and really hot and throbbing a bit. It hurt so bad as she was wiping it with disinfectant and she put some sort of honey on it and have to keep the plaster on for two days now.

It looks really grose and its so painful :(

Anyway so far no need for the doctor and no need for antibiotics that was what I was worried about it lol. She said it will heal if I continue to look after it.

Thanks for your reply though it doesnt seem to be bruised though and I dont really know what an ingrown toe nail is if it means my toe nail is half covered with soreness stuff and red as then yeah hopefully the stuff will fix it the nurse gave me.

[PinkRoxy]

It's still really sore but Im still fighting having to go to the doctor. Surely it would be weird to go to the doctor over a sill little toe lol.

I am considering taking some left over antibiotics I found at home but not sure if they would be the right ones :(

[PanchoGoz]

Yor toe needs space! Plants need oxygen and light to grow healthy, as do toes! Ok not the best analogy, but don't keep ptting stff on it. Really, do as the nurse suggested bt nothing more, it will go off. If it's still bad in a few days, see the doctor. Take some painkillers if it is keeping you awake.
There is a key on my keyboard that doesn't work, I apologise for the typos.

[Anxious_gal]

Put your foot in a bowel of warm salt water!
That stuff is amazing ! It will help draw out all of the infection :)

[PinkRoxy]

Thanks. I actually did that tonight and it was really hot water too.
Im off to the nurse in the morning just to make sure its ok and that she can get rid of anything that is there. I so would post a photo but I need to load it on so maybe tomorrow.

[Pipkin]

Hi there,

As my mother used to say, stop poking at it or it'll drop off! (it won't really drop off but you get what I mean). Toes can take a bit longer to heal as the circulation to your feet isn't always great but the body has an amazing ability to heal itself, if left to its own devices.

Definitely don't take old antibiotics - only your GP should prescribe them for specific issues and they probably aren't the right ones anyway. You'll only make future antibiotics less effective as your body will build up a resistance (or at least, bacteria will).

It will be fine, honest.

Pip x

[PinkRoxy]

Ended up going to the doctor today and she said it really needed antibiotics so she put me on some.
It was more infected than I thought. Now Im puzzled as to how an earth it actually got like that.

Thanks everyone for your support and replies :)

[swgrl09]

Usually mine goes away after a few days of antibiotic cream ... I am wondering if maybe it is ingrown. That means the nail grows into the skin somewhat. It is painful but once you get the nail out it gets better. I'm sure if that was the case though the nurse would have seen it.

[PinkRoxy]

No it wasnt.
Mine usually goes away in a few days too in the past except for this one. Its starting to feel better now with the antibiotics the redness is starting to go and it isnt as sore pressing on the bottom of the toe nail it just needs to fix up the side of the toe now and i should be sweet :)

Doctor said the infection is too big to be fixed my antibiotic cream so its best to do it as soon as you hurt it to keep any infection going in.

[PinkRoxy]

Hey I had a shower and took my bandage off my toe its still really red and a bit sore. I had taken two antibiotics yesterday that is when I started them and all three of them today. How long does it actually take for the infection to go away?

[bottleblond]

Hi pink

If your toe is infected bath it in salt water for 5 minutes.. DON'T towel dry it, let it dry on it's own and then put a dressing on it. (Using a towel allows fibres to enter the infection)

DON'T get it wet otherwise.

DON'T miss your antibiotics.

Do this daily and fresh dressings daily....

This is information from the Podiatry service. My son has an infected toe twice and this is exactly what i have to do for him.

Hope it helps hun.

Lisa
xx

[PinkRoxy]

Thanks Lisa
I think I notice very little improvements now. I am very careful when taking antibiotics and make sure I dont miss any as I worry too much about infections as I know its something you MUST try and get rid of.

Anyway thanks anyway I was continue doing treatment on my toe but by the reaction the doctor gave me when she saw it it was pretty bad :( and Im sure they have seen many.

[PinkRoxy]

Hey Lisa thanks for the idea of the hot water I tried it this morning and it really did draw alot of stuff out of my toe and now it is feeling heaps better.

Thanks heaps again :)