With severe internal diseases, poor nutrition and with age, the growth of the nail slows down, its structure undergoes changes. Only a doctor can accurately determine the cause of the violation based on the results of microscopic tests and examinations.
But to get an idea of what happens to the nails of the legs or hands, you can use the photo with fungal diseases of different types.
Causes of nail deformation
Molds, yeast-like fungi and dermatophyte fungi cause infectious nail diseases (onychomycosis), which display similar symptoms.
All kinds of toenail or toenail fungus deform the nail plate, change its transparency, shine, color, this variety can be seen in the presented photos.
Changes in the nail occur not only with onychomycosis, but also with lesions, chronic paronychia (inflammation of the nail fold), psoriasis, eczema of the hand, dermatitis. Before concluding that there is a fungal infection, it is necessary to consider all possible options.
Signs of fungal infection
The most informative signs of fungal infection are changes in the color of the nail plate, the presence of detachment of the nail, superficial changes - transverse and longitudinal grooves on the nail plate, point depressions, thickening, destruction of the nail.
The pink color of a healthy nail is determined by the transparency of the nail plate and the blood vessels visible through it. With onychomycosis, the nail loses its transparency, the color becomes brownish, yellow, less often green, black.
Candida fungi and dermatophytes cause onycholysis, which is the separation of the affected part of the nail. When infected with dermatophytes, onycholysis is observed from the far edge of the nail, and if infected with Candida, the nail lags behind the nail bed at the base, in the crescent moon area.
A symptom of a candido fungus can be inflammation of the lateral periungual ridges - paronychia. This disease has bacterial forms caused by streptococci and staphylococci, as well as non-infectious forms: eczema, psoriasis, systemic vasculitis.
When the toenails are affected by the fungus Trichophyton rubrum, the plaque is affected, as you can see in the photo, the roller is not affected by the infection. The plate becomes yellowish, strongly thickens, the accumulated fungal masses are well distinguished under it.
Nail fungus due to dermatophyte infection
In 95% of all nail fungus cases, the disease is caused by the dermatophytes Trichophyton rubrum and Trichophyton mentagrophytes.
Trichophyton rubrum infection
Onychomycosis begins when the fungus penetrates under the nail plate from the free edge. Fungal infection is indicated by the appearance of a yellowish spot, an uneven, crumbling surface of the distal (remote) edge of the nail in the area of the spot.
distal-lateral formof the dermatophyte fungal infection Trichophyton rubrum is common. In the photo, you can see that the stain caused by the introduction of the fungus is located along the fold of the lateral periungual nail.
The fungus Trichophyton rubrum, as a rule, affects the big toes, causing hyperkeratosis - an accumulation of fungi between the nail plate and the nail bed, which in the photo looks like a loose yellowish mass.
At this stage, the fungus occupies an insignificant part of the nail, as in the photo presented, and with the help of local treatment it is possible to cope with the incipient onychomycosis.
Without treatment, the stain grows, gradually affects the entire edge of the nail and then moves to the half moon. In the photo, the nail fungus looks like yellowish streaks directed to the growth zone of the nail plate.
Withthe distal form of the nail fungus, which is often found on the big toes, a yellowish spot of infection appears on the distal edge of the nail, in its central part, as can be seen in thephoto.
In the advanced stage of the fungus on the legs, several nails are affected, as in the photo, and the treatment is no longer limited to local remedies and pills. In addition to antifungal drugs, the nail is subjected to hardware cleaning, to remove all or part of the nail plate.
On the leg, caused by Trichophyton rubrum, with hyperkeritosis, long-term therapy should be performed with the use of all known antifungal agents and treatments, as can be seen in the photo.
Fungal infection with total nail damage spreads to the entire area of the nail plate, the nail is completely destroyed.
Infection with another representative of dermatophytes, the fungus Trichophyton mentagrophytes, can also lead to a total fungal infection of the nail.
Trichophyton mentagrophytes infection
With a total defeat of the toenail with fungi Trichophyton mentagrophytes, the nail plate is deformed, the photo shows that it thickens, changes its structure, collapses, yellowish spots appear on its entire surface.
Nail infection with this dermatophyte usually causes superficial white onychomycosis of the big toe, less often than the little finger.
This fungus practically does not occur on the nails of the hands, often causes interdigital dermatophytosis on the legs, as in the photo, and requires simultaneous treatment of the skin of the feet and nails.
A symptom of nail fungus infection, usually on the feet, are white spots of various sizes, as in the photo, reminiscent of leukonychia, a disease of the nail plate itself.
But unlike leukonychia, in which white spots are caused by the appearance of air bubbles in the layers of the nail, white spots in a fungal infection are the result of the activity of Trichophyton mentagrophytes.
Rarely, superficial white onychomycosis is caused by mold; in AIDS, the causative agent of this type of fungus can be Trichophyton rubrum and affect the nails of both feet and hands.
Nail changes due to Candida infection
The fungus usually occurs in women, affects the nails of the working hand, which is most often in contact with water.
For candidal onychomycosis, the proximal form of infection is characteristic, in which the fungus first affects the nail fold of the nail base, then penetrates the growth zone and the nail bed. Then it gradually moves along the nail from the base to the edge, capturing an ever larger area of the nail plate.
The causative agent of the disease in candidal onychomycosis is Candida albicans. This fungus invades the toenails and fingernails, spreading from the half-moon area at the base of the nail plate, up to the free edge, as can be seen in the photo.
A sign of Candida nail infectionalbicans is inflammation of the nail fold (paronychia), separation of the cuticle from the nail plate, pain, pus discharge when an infection is attachedbacterial.
Candida albicans is able to penetrate the nail and its free edge. In this case, they talk about the distal form of infection, which is combined, as a rule, with cutaneous candidiasis.
Treatment of candida fungus on the nails of the hands and toes with damage to more than half of the area of the nail plate, as in the photo, includes not only the fight against nail fungus, but also measures to reducethe activity of candida in the natural reservoirs of their deposit: intestine, oral cavity, genital mucosa. . .
Mold infestation
Molds cause fungi much less frequently than Candida or dermatophytes. The main symptom of toenail infection with mold is, as you can see in the photo, inchange the color of the nail plate to blue, black, greenish.
Signs of toenail mold can be dark spots, spots on the nail plate or, as in the photo, a black longitudinal stripe.
Preparations against fungi
Antifungal agents with fluconazole, ketoconazole, terbinafine, itraconazole, griseofulvin are used to treat nail fungus caused by dermatophytes, as in this photo.
Antifungal agents with terbinafine are effective for dermatophyte infections.
Antifungal agents with voriconazole are highly active against dermatophytes.
is used andto treat nail moldon feet, hands andagainst candida yeast. The spectrum of action includes molds such as Aspergillum, Fusarium, Penicillium.
Preparations based on itraconazole cope with molds.
Fungal-like nail diseases
A grayish tintsometimes appears on the nailwith eczema. In this case, the nail plate can move away from the nail bed, which is observed with a fungus.
Outwardly very similar to onychomycosismanifestations of psoriasis. With this disease, not only doeschange color, but alsothe nail plate thickens.
On its surface, point depressions are found, the separation of the nail plate from the nail bed is noted. But there are differences from the fungus: in psoriasis, the detached and healthy parts of the toenail are separated by a pink and yellowed stripe over time.
The bluish colorgets the nailwith Pseudomonas infectionFrequent mechanical rubbing of the nail fold causes the appearance of superficial furrows, waviness of the nail.
White spots of leukonychia, whose appearance isassociated with metabolic disorders, can also be mistaken for a superficial white fungus with a large area of the stain.
Changes in color, shape of the nail causing lesions. The big toes are most at risk. The nail with a wound, as well as with a fungus, thickens and darkens.
The difference between the wound and the fungus is that the changes during the injury are noticeable only on the injured finger, the nails of the other fingers remain unchanged, they do not become infected with the diseased finger, as in onychomycosis.
The consequence of the trauma can be a partial separation of the nail from the nail bed, the formation of a cavity which, under unfavorable conditions, is rapidly colonized by fungi.
The nail plate can be separated from the nail bed under the influence of light (photoonicolysis), with iron deficiency anemia, hormonal diseases. Splitting, nail loss occurs with lichen erythematous, bullous dermatosis, nail trauma.
But you can finally make sure that the conclusion is correct and start treatment, you can only after asking for help from a dermatologist - a specialist in skin diseases or a mycologist - a doctor who treats fungal diseases.