We Provide Fast Relief for Painful Ingrown Toenails in North Seattle

Get Back to the Activities You Love With Pain-Free Toenails

Does this sound like you? Lately, you've been dealing with:

• Sharp, shooting pain with every step
• Red, swollen skin around your toenail
• Drainage or yellow pus from the affected area
• Inability to wear normal shoes or participate in sports
• Constant worry about the pain getting worse
• Missing out on activities you love

Maybe you've already tried:

• Trimming it yourself
• Soaking your foot
• Hoping it would get better on its own

Unfortunately ingrown toenails almost always need professional treatment to resolve the issue for good. Caused by curved nails that grow into the surrounding skin, ingrown toenails are one of the most common conditions we treat at Foot and Ankle Center of Lake City.

You Shouldn't Have to Live in Pain

Every person deserves to walk, run, and live without being held back by preventable foot pain. Ingrown toenails may seem minor, but they can seriously impact your quality of life—and for those with diabetes, nerve damage, or poor circulation, they can become dangerous.

Let Me Help You!

I'm Dr. Rion Berg, and I've helped thousands of patients like you for over 40 years obtain fast, lasting relief from ingrown toenails.  If ingrown toenails are making you miserable or forcing you to give up the activities you enjoy, I can provide the care you need to get back in the game and back to doing what you love.

Simple 3-Step Process for Ingrown Toenail Treatment in North Seattle

Step 1: Comprehensive Evaluation

• We'll take a detailed history of your symptoms
• Assess the severity and any signs of infection
• Determine if you need antibiotics, surgery, or other treatments
• Create a personalized treatment plan just for you

Step 2: Professional Treatment

• For Infections: Nail avulsion procedure (quick, in-office, minimal pain)
• For Permanent Relief: Matricectomy to prevent recurrence
• Post-Treatment Care: Clear instructions for optimal healing

Learn how the procedure is done by viewing the videos below (Trigger Warning: The videos below contain graphic displays of ingrown toenail surgery, although there is minimal bleeding.

Step 3: Prevention Strategy

Understanding the primary triggers behind ingrown toenails and implementing preventive strategies can help you avoid this uncomfortable condition.

• Learn proper toenail trimming techniques: cutting your toenails straight across and to the correct length
• Avoiding trauma to your toenails, including shoe fitting advice
• Understand how to prevent future ingrown toenails
• Follow-up care to ensure complete healing

Types of Nail Surgery

Performed right in our office, surgical treatments ease the pain and discomfort of the offending nail. Most of our patients experience very little pain after surgery and can start normal activity the next day.

Nail Avulsion

When a patient has a nail with recent drainage, redness, or swelling of the skin on the nail border these are signs of infection. As a result, most of the time our office will do a nail avulsion surgical procedure first. It involves applying a local anesthetic and removing part of the nail's side border. It's done at the office, takes only a few minutes, and is relatively painless.  Afterwards, the inflammation around the toenail border usually resolves within a couple of days. Patients are asked to soak their toe at home to assist in healing the infection. After the toe has healed (usually seven days), a second procedure called a matricectomy is done. 

Matricectomy

The second more permanent procedure, called the matricectomy, can only be done after the infection has resolved. It is usually successful in preventing the ingrown toenail from recurring. In this procedure the "root cells" which lie just under the toenail are cauterized with a chemical to prevent reoccurence of the ingrown toenail.

This chemical would be like pouring gasoline on a fire if the toe was still infected. But by the time you heal up from the first procedure, usually within a week, it is safe to do the matricectomy to help prevent reoccurence of the ingrown toenail.  This procedure takes about two weeks to heal and it needs to be checked by a podiatrist to make sure it's healed well.

You might wonder why the matricectomy isn't done first. It can be done first if you had no redness, drainage, and in my evaluation no sign of inflammation in the nail border. It's not uncommon to find no redness but some swelling of the tissue, pain on exam, and drainage during the procedure. That's when I must limit the procedure to the nail avulsion.

If the nail has simply been tender for a long time but doesn't have any of those other indicators of infection then the permanent procedure can be performed at the first visit. Otherwise the safest thing is to do the nail avulsion first and then the matricectomy.

After Surgery

• Follow the post-op instructions given to you by our office
• If you've been prescribed oral antibiotics, be sure to take all the medication, even if your symptoms have improved.

FAQs

Is It OK to Dig Out An Ingrown Toenail?

Digging out an ingrown toenail at home, or what I call “bathroom surgery”, should be avoided as this can lead to infection. Instead, make an appointment with a podiatrist as soon as you feel pain or notice redness or swelling around your toenail. The longer you wait to treat it, the more likely it is to become infected.

How to Treat An Ingrown Toenail At Home

While I don’t recommend removing an ingrown toenail at home, there are things you can do to reduce the pain and prevent infection while you’re waiting for an appointment. Soak your foot in warm water with Epsom salts twice a day for about 10-15 mins

• Use an antibiotic cream and keep it covered with a bandage.
• Take an anti-inflammatory medication if your doctor recommends it.

Keep in mind if it’s red, swollen, and you notice pus, it’s probably infected. You’ll need to see a podiatrist right away.

What Happens If I Don’t Treat My Ingrown Toenail?

Delaying treatment of an ingrown toenail is more likely to result in an infection. Swelling, pus, and redness around your toenail are all indications that an infection is present. For those with diabetes, failure to treat an ingrown toenail can be catastrophic. Many people with diabetes develop neuropathy and have reduced sensation in their feet, poor circulation, and slow healing capabilities. They may not feel the pain of an ingrown toenail. Waiting to treat can lead to infection, which can spread to the local tissue and bone and may result in amputation.

Patient Testimonials

I had an ingrown toenail that needed attention.  Dr. Berg explained everything he did step by step.  I barely felt the needle when he numbed my toe. No pain at all during the procedure to remove part of my toenail.  For the next two weeks, I continued to wait for my toe to start hurting.  Never happened.  Amazing!  I just went back for my two-week checkup.  Everything was great.   I highly recommend Dr. Berg and his staff.

PB, Bothell

I recently developed ingrown toenails.  I made an appointment with Dr  Berg.  Very nice and well laid out space. Great and friendly staff.  Dr Berg is very professional and skilled. His treatment was painless and results very good.  In addition I never had to wait more than two or three minutes.  A great find!

Tom G, Lake Forest Park

I came in dreading the painful ingrown toenail removal stories I had heard. Dr. Berg was thorough, kind, and explained everything to me. The whole process was pretty stress free!

Diane A.

I want to say thank you for Dr. Berg and his staff for working my daughter into his busy schedule and for taking care of her ingrown toenail, which had been causing her significant pain. Several other podiatry practices told us she’d need a referral from a primary or urgent care provider and even then would need to wait at least two weeks to be seen absent diagnosed infection, regardless of the amount of pain or discomfort she was otherwise in. Dr. Berg did not require a referral and worked her into his schedule the next day. She complimented his bedside manner and technique and was so thankful for being seen so soon. Thanks Dr. Berg for old school patient-centered care!

Jeff M.