Fungal toenails, also called onychomycosis, are toenails that have become infected with an organism called a fungus. This fungus is the same organism that causes athlete's foot.
The fungus can make the toenail thick, loose, irregular and discolored. Often there is a flaky material beneath the nail. (If your nail develops a black spot beneath it, you should be seen immediately to make sure you do not have a melanoma which is a serious skin cancer.)
Treatment of fungal toenails, if performed early might simply be to clip away the problem portion of the nail and apply an antifungal solution. Once the conditioned has progressed, oral medications may be used with or without nail removal.
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