Write-up by R. Drysdale
What is distal subungual onychomycosis? It sounds like a long complicated medical term, but this just indicates a nail fungus infection that starts under the nail at the tip of the finger or toe. Distal indicates "distant from" (distant from the root of the nail) subungual means "under the nail," and onychomycosis is the scientific term for a fungal infection of the nail. Several of us feel in terms of just one type of nail fungus infection but, in truth there are a number of distinct manifestations of this troublesome infection and doctors use distinct terms to differentiate between them.
Other varieties of subungual nail fungus infections contain lateral subungual (spreading along the side of the nail), and proximal subungual (starting near the cuticle and root of the nail). All of these forms of the infection tend to involve dermatophytes - fungi that are specially adapted to grow in nails, skin, and hair - but distal subungual onychomycosis is by far the one most generally seen. Lateral infections generally accompany the distal form although proximal infections are quite rare and tend to happen in cases of nail injury or in patients whose immune system is not functioning appropriately.
Right after lateral and distal subungual onychomycosis, the next most frequent kind of fungal nail infection is white superficial onychomycosis. As the name implies, in this condition the fungus invades the nail from the leading surface, producing a white patch that spreads to cover the whole surface over time. The infection generally involves the toenails. Like subungual nail fungus, superficial infections are usually caused by dermatophytes, though the fungal species involved could be distinct. Only about ten percent of fungal nail infections are superficial. This sort of infection almost certainly responds better to topical antifungal treatments since the thickness of the nail does not lie between the treatment and the fungus.
All nail conditions suspicious of distal subungual onychomycosis, and indeed any form of fungal nail infection, should be effectively diagnosed by a medical expert. Just as there are various types of fungal nail infections, there are also other conditions that can trigger deformation and discoloration of nails. Some of these look surprising like superficial or subungual nail fungus - be sure that fungus is the cause of your nail difficulty just before attempting to treat it. As soon as you are certain of the diagnosis, you can decide on between prescription drugs for onychomycosis, an option nail fungus remedy, or one of the standard residence remedies.
About the Author
R. Drysdale is a freelance writer with a lot more than 25 years encounter as a health care expert. She is a contributing editor to Distal Subungual Onychomycosis at Nail Fungus Treatment, a blog dedicated to the treatment of fingernail and toenail fungus.
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