Hi there,
I have a relatively moderate case of RSD that lately had seemed to be gradually improving. Unfortunately I seem to have developed an ingrown toenail on the affected foot. Or at least I think that's what it is- its kind of weird. It bleeds a fair bit but it isn't infected or swollen and doesn't hurt that much. However, 1/3 of granulation tissue (which is supposed to form during wound healing, but can get out of control) has grown over the top of and also underneath the nail and that seems to be a major cause of the bleeding - some kind of RSD thing?

Anyway, I'm rather concerned about whatever treatments might be used, especially more invasive ones, and whether or not they might worsen the RSD. Do any of you have any experience with an ingrown toenail on an RSD-affected foot? What about local anesthetic?

I'm not sure if it's the same thing or not (probably not) but I had an issue with bleeding under the nail of my big toe on my RSD foot. It DID get infected...though I don't think that it started out that way because at first it just hurt but after 2 months of being not sure what to do about it and it just getting worse and worse I finally went to the doctor. They ended up taking the nail off...felt tons better after they did. It didn't seem to affect the RSD at all...but I can't say what it might do to anyone else. What I do know is that just taking antibiotics didn't help. So the only option was to take the nail off. If I had done it sooner I probably would have saved myself a whole lot of pain...but I was worried about the RSD and thought I could just ignore it.

I had an ingrown toenail about 6 months after developing RSD.

Never really thought much of it until it got infected so had to call my PM Doctor.

His advice was to take antibiotics and hope the infection would clear but it didn't, it got worse.

After a short while I saw a General Practitioner who told me that i'd need to have it removed surgically has it had got so bad.

My PM Doctor made sure the GP was informed on RSD and I was booked in to have it removed a few days later.

My Doctor knew it'd cause more pain so it was aranged for me to stay in hospital overnight where I was put on a Morphine pump to help control the pain.

Because of my RSD, the toenail was removed under general anaesthetic. We all thought the procedure would go well but it didn't. Upon waking I developed severe Myoclonic jerks in the same limb. No ammount of medications would control them and my Doctor was shocked as he had never seen anything like that happen before.

The spasms have settled down a little now, however I still have them.

I don't say this to scare you, just wanted to inform you of some of the risks. It is better to stay away from surgical procedures on an RSD limb if at all possible so i'd get it treated as quickly as possible so it isn't as invasive.

After the toenail removal, I was told that my RSD limbs are super sensitive and that any needle in them would cause problems (had a nerve block and lost all my coordination). Hopefully that wont be the case with you.

Speak to your treating dr and make sure he advices whoever performs the removal on RSD.

I hope everything goes well. If you want to talk i'm here!

In case anyone finds this thread while googling or whatever, this is how things turned out:

After seeing three different podiatrists, I chose the one who had the least drastic, invasive approach. He anesthetized the toe with three local injections into the toe itself, and then removed just enough nail to get rid of the ingrown part. The toe's huge granuloma (a growth of bloody tissue caused by the irritation) would, he said, probably subside by itself, but he suggested I speed it along by soaking it in warm water or putting a warm wet teabag on top of it.

There was a bit of a reaction but nothing catastrophic or lasting. The main concern now, 4 months later, is that the toenail is regrowing in a weird and ugly fashion, although its unclear whether this will have any negative repercussions.

My wife's, who has the RSD, toe nails do grow out oddly. They seem to grow on an angle and are very thick. Could it be this thickness is what causes ingrown nails perhaps? Anyway, she has her toenails clipped by a foot doctor every couple of months and will do so again next week.

Glad to hear it's worked out for you so far, WolfLarsen. If your experience is anything like mine was, the deformed nail (I'm guessing thick, soft, and fused to the skin where it was cut?) will probably be forever mildly annoying but nothing serious -- it's just never going to grow right again. That's just how RSD rolls. Slightly different in my case, as the ingrown toenail is what led (eventually) to my RSD, but it got ingrown again after I was dx'd and they did the whole nail snip thing again -- that's the time it didn't grow back right.

Abnormal toenails are an extremely common problem with people that have CRPS in that extremity.

I have Crps in my arm and I keep getting ingrown toenails. It has already happened twice and it has never happened before is it still common even if it is a different part of the body then where the pain is located?

I am having the same problem! I have rsd/crps in my right hand but I am now having a problem with ingrown toenails. I have never had ingrown toenails before! It's more painful then my rsd/crps. My nail growth on my rsd/crps hand is out of control! Does this mean it could be spreading? Does anyone know if my rsd/crps and ingrown toenails are related? Thanks for your input!