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More fungus factoids
Nail fungus or onychomycosis is a fungal infection involving the the nails .The fungi live off the dead skin and nail matter.More specifically the keratin in the nails and skin.Very often the nail become thick and discolored from the fungus and keratin that has collected under the nails.If left untreated in the feet it will spread to your finger nails. The causes for nail fungus are many.Such as a preexisting athletes foot infection,or being immmunocompromised just to name a two.
Home remedies for nail fungus have very little published data proving their effectiveness.There are double blind studies demonstrating the fungicidal(Killing fungi)activity of tea tree oil.
Here are the facts
Most cases of onychomycosis(nail fungus) is caused by the fungi T. Rubrum or T. Mentagrophytes.However, a nail culture should be taken to confirm the diagnoses.One of the reasons that treatments for nail fungus fail is that not all fungi respond to the oral treatments in the same way.Make sure to tell you doctor what medications you are taking as the antifungals may interact with them rendering them ineffective.
There are many treatments for Mycotic nails(nail fungus).Topical treatments only work in very mild cases of onychomycosis(nail fungus) and are used primarily for children .Oral medications like Lamisil and Sporonox work in most cases but you have to have blood tests to make sure the medication is not affecting your liver.
For those patients who are on other medications,or who have liver problems there is a newer laser therapy.
The doctor applies a small laser to each nail and kills the fungus.The laser is not 100% effective and it is not covered by insurance.