Abnormalities in the nails constitute an abundant and increasingly common reason for patients to seek dermatologic treatment.
One of the most frequent pathologies is the appearance of fungi on the nails, generally on the toes, which causes a very characteristic yellowing and which requires treatment in order to eradicate it.
It is important to establish from the outset whether the cause of the change is a fungus or a simple alteration in the nail. Nowadays, many people continuously apply exhaustive and tiring homemade treatments based on the supposition that it is a fungus causing the alteration, when in most cases the changes are actually due to structural alterations with no pathological importance, in other words, with no infection.
A simple culture to determine whether or not there is a fungus is the first step to curing onychomycosis, the most frequent nail disease, when there really is an infection.
As is the case with hair, nails are very sensitive to internal changes, medication and immune diseases, as well as to external aggressions, such as chemical products or structural alterations.
Providing a diagnosis and suitable treatment for alterations to the nails can sometimes be very difficult.