A new and simple suturing technique applied after surgery to correct ingrown toenails may improve clinical outcomes: A randomized controlled trial

Surgical interventions for ingrown toenail

BACKGROUND

Paronychia is a prevalent clinical disease affecting the soft tissue surrounding the nails. Most cases of toenail paronychia are commonly associated with ingrown toenails. While conservative treatment is effective for mild cases of ingrown toenails, surgical intervention becomes necessary for moderate to severe cases, particularly when granulomas form.

OBJECTIVE

To provide a systematic understanding of these classic and modified procedures for surgeons to select the appropriate surgical interventions for patients suffering from moderate to severe ingrown toenails and discuss this technology's advantages and limitations for dermatologic surgery.

METHODS

A literature search was performed using PubMed/MEDLINE and Google Scholar databases. Studies discussing surgical intervention for ingrown toenails were included. Moreover, the surgical steps were meticulously depicted by detailed schematic diagrams.

RESULTS

These surgical techniques can be divided into three categories: matrix resection, debulking of periungual soft tissues, and the rotational flap technique. Each approach possesses distinct advantages and limitations.

CONCLUSION

For moderate to severe cases, surgical interventions may exhibit superior outcomes, faster recovery times, and lower recurrence rates. The surgeon must possess a comprehensive understanding and proficient skillset in various surgical techniques for ingrown toenails.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials of surgical treatments for ingrown toenails part II: healing time, post-operative complications, pain, and participant satisfaction

BACKGROUND

When performing nail surgery, clinicians must choose from a multitude of procedures and variations within each procedure. Much has been published to guide this decision making, but there are a lack of up to date robust systematic reviews to assess the totality of this evidence.

METHODS

Five databases (MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science and CENTRAL) and two registers (Clinicaltrials.gov and ISRCTN) were searched to January 2022 for randomised trials evaluating the effects of a surgical intervention(s) for ingrown toenails. Two independent reviewers screened records, extracted data, assessed risk of bias and certainty of evidence. Data on co-primary outcomes of symptom relief and symptomatic regrowth were presented in our first paper. This paper presents data for the secondary outcomes and further discussion.

RESULTS

Of 3,928 records identified, 36 randomised trials were included in the systematic review. Healing time appears to be reduced with shorter application of phenol. A reduced healing time was also apparent was with the addition of curettage, although this may also increase the risk of post-operative bleeding and pain. Post operative bleeding was also reportedly lower in people who received local anaesthetic with epinephrine but no tourniquet. Use of phenol with nail bed excision may decrease the risk of infection. Lower pain scores were reported when using partial matrixectomy and surgical interventions with phenol. Shorter duration of pain was reported with phenolisation and wedge resection. Participant satisfaction was high overall.

CONCLUSION

This second paper reports secondary outcomes from a robust systematic review of randomised trials on surgical treatment of ingrown toenails. Despite the large volume of clinical trials conducted on the topic, few clinical conclusions can be drawn due to the poor quality of these studies. Further high-quality clinical trials are needed to answer fundamental questions in the surgical treatment of ingrown toenails.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials on surgical treatments for ingrown toenails part I: recurrence and relief of symptoms

BACKGROUND

Ingrown toenails are a common nail pathology. When conservative treatments are ineffective, a surgical approach is often utilised. Despite recent narrative reviews, there is a need for an up-to-date and rigorous systematic review of surgical methods for treating ingrown toenails.

METHODS

Five databases (MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Web of Science and CENTRAL) and two registers (Clinicaltrials.gov and ISRCTN) were searched to January 2022 for randomised trials evaluating the effects of a surgical intervention(s) for ingrown toenails with a follow-up of at least 1 month. Two independent reviewers screened records, extracted data, assessed risk of bias and certainty of evidence.

RESULTS

Of 3,928 records identified, 36 (3,756 participants; 62.7% males) surgical interventions were included in the systematic review and 31 studies in the meta-analysis. There was very low quality evidence that using phenol with nail avulsion vs nail avulsion without phenol reduces the risk of recurrence (risk ratio [RR] 0.13 [95% CI 0.06 to 0.27], p < 0.001). No favourable effect was observed between chemical or surgical vs conservative management (0.55 [0.19 to 1.61], p = 0.280; 0.72 [0.33 to 1.56], p = 0.410), chemical or surgical vs other (e.g., CO2 laser, electrocautery) (1.61 [0.88 to 2.95], p = 0.120; 0.58 [0.25 to 1.37], p = 0.220), chemical vs surgical (0.75 [0.46 to 1.21], p = 0.230), surgical vs surgical (0.42 [0.21 to 0.85]), chemical vs chemical (0.19 [0.01 to 3.80], p = 0.280), surgical vs surgical + chemical (3.68 [0.20 to 67.35], p = 0.380), chemical vs surgical + chemical (1.92 [0.06 to 62.30], p = 0.710), local anaesthetic vs local anaesthetic + adrenaline (1.03 [0.22 to 4.86], p = 0.970), chemical timings 30 s vs 60 s (2.00 [0.19 to 21.41]) or antibiotics vs no antibiotics (0.54 [0.12 to 2.52], p = 0.430). Central toenail resection was the only procedure to significantly relieve symptoms (p = 0.001) but data were only available up to 8 weeks post-surgery.

CONCLUSION

Despite the high number of publications, the quality of research was poor and the conclusions that can be inferred from existing trials is limited. Phenolisation of the nail matrix appears to reduce the risk of recurrence following nail ablation, and with less certainty 1 min appears to be the optimum time for application. Despite this being a widely performed procedure there remains a lack of good quality evidence to guide practice.

A novel modified Winograd surgical tricks and tips with a "bird flap" for the treatment of ingrown toenails

BACKGROUND

The Winograd technique is the most commonly used surgical treatment for ingrown toenails. We describe a novel modified approach, more effective and simpler to perform with a better cosmetic outcome.

METHODS

We retrospectively included 45 and 39 patients with 67 and 58 ingrown toenails who underwent our modified Winograd technique and the Winograd technique, respectively, from July 2017 to June 2020, and obtained data after 3, 6, and 12 months of follow-up.

RESULTS

No significant differences in the postoperative time taken to return to regular activities in the modified Winograd and traditional Winograd groups (p = 0.103) and regarding the recurrence in both groups (p = 0.055) were found. The extent of proximal germinal matrix exposure with the modified Winograd technique was significantly more clearly revealed than in the traditional Winograd method contextually (p < 0.05). The postoperative appearance satisfaction rate was significantly higher in the modified Winograd group than in the traditional Winograd group (p = 0.029).

CONCLUSION

The modified Winograd technique is effective in treating ingrown toenails.

A Comparison of Clinical Outcomes Between the Winograd and Modified Winograd Methods for Ingrown Toenails: A Retrospective Study of the Importance of Suturing Techniques

Aim: This study aimed to compare the effects of the Winograd and modified Winograd methods for nail bed suturing on clinical outcomes in patients with nail ingrown.

Methods: In total, 45 patients who underwent surgery for ingrown toenails between December 2019 and December 2020 were randomised retrospectively. In this study, different methods applied by the authors were studied, and the methods applied by each author were divided into two separate groups. All patients had partial germinal matrix and nail bed excisions. Thirty (53.6%) of the nails were dressed in gauze, leaving the excised area of ​​the nail unsutured (group 1). Then, the remaining 26 nails (group 2) were sutured with the mattress suturing technique to ensure that the skin was under the nail. Clinical outcomes, visual analogue scale (VAS) scores, and verbal satisfaction status were statistically evaluated.

Results: In our study, 56 nails of 45 patients were evaluated retrospectively. The patients were followed up for an average of 13 (10­19) months. The mean age was 27.13 (15-­48) years. In total, 31 (68.9%) of the patients were men, and 14 (31.1%) were women. The incidence of postoperative bleeding and granulation tissue development decreased in the sutured group. In group 1, the development of hypertrophic granulation tissue after surgery had a significantly negative impact on VAS score and recovery time. In the sutured group, patients returned to work or performed activities of daily living for a shorter period. Approximately 95% of patients were satisfied or extremely satisfied.

Conclusion: Partial matrix excision using the appropriate suturing technique is associated with a fast recovery, low recurrence rate, high patient satisfaction, and earlier return to work activities of daily life among patients treated for ingrown toenails.

A Minimally-Invasive, Simple, Rapid, and Effective Surgical Technique for the Treatment of Ingrown Toenails: A Reminder of the Original Winograd Procedure

(1) Background: Ingrown toenail is a common disorder of the toe that induces severe toe pain and limits daily activities. The Winograd method, the most widely used operative modality for ingrown toenails, has been modified over years to include wedge resection of the nail fold and complete ablation of the germinal matrix. We evaluated the outcomes of original Winograd procedure without wedge resection with electrocautery-aided matrixectomy. (2) Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the outcomes of patients who underwent surgery for ingrown toenails at a university hospital for two years from November 2015 to October 2017. Surgery was performed in 76 feet with a mean operation time of 9.34 min. (3) Results: The minimal interval from surgery to return to regular activities was 13.26 (range 7 to 22) days. Recurrence and postoperative wound infections were found in 3 (3.95%) and 2 (2.63%) patients, respectively. Evaluation of patient satisfaction at one-year follow-up showed that 40 (52.63%) patients were very satisfied, 33 (43.42%) were satisfied, 3 (3.95%) were dissatisfied, and none of them were very dissatisfied. The average follow-up duration was 14.66 (range 12 to 25) months. (4) Conclusions: Therefore, it is believed that this less-invasive and simple procedure could be easily performed by clinicians, with satisfactory patient outcomes.

Recurrence and satisfaction with sutured surgical treatment of an ingrown toenail

BACKGROUND

In the present study, we investigated the satisfaction of patients following sutured surgical treatment of an ingrown toenail with nail preservation and without matricectomy.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study was retrospective. In total, 37 consecutive patients underwent 54 ingrown toenail surgeries. The clinical outcomes, satisfaction of surgery, recurrence rates and the duration of symptoms were compared.

RESULTS

Recurrence with the technique was very low (one toenail). The mean overall satisfaction score on the surgical satisfaction questionnaire was 86.4 ± 10.4 and extended with a modified esthetic subscale (88 ± 10). The mean pain subscale score was the lowest at 77.1 ± 16.8, while the subscale returns to baseline scored 80.9 ± 16.4, the subscale global satisfaction scored 98.1 ± 7.2 and the subscale esthetics scored 92.1 ± 15.

CONCLUSION

Our suturing technique was associated with low recurrence and high satisfaction rates. We showed that higher levels of satisfaction with the treatment were achieved in men, and the duration of symptoms was no longer than one year.