Fungus Got You Down? Your Guide To Fungal Nail Infections
Are your toe nails looking yellow, white, or brown? Maybe they are looking a combination of these three colors? Are your nails thick and easy to break? Maybe there is even a weird smell coming from your toes? You could be suffering from a fungal nail infection. Technically, your fungal infection will fall into one of four different categories.
Exploring the Different Types of Fungal Nail Infection
There are four different kinds of fungal nail infection which could be plaguing your nails. Which one you have depends on exactly where the function started. In almost all cases, dermatophytes, which is a fungi that helps keratin grow, is what caused your nail infection.
Distal Subungual Onychomycosis
Distal Subungual Onychomycosis, or DOS for short, is the more common type of toe nail infection. This is because it is very similar to athletes foot, which is a condition a lot of people suffer from at one time or another. DOS will infect the skin in your nail bed as well as your nail. Typically, your nail bed and part of your nail will turn a yellow or white color if you have this infection.
White Superficial Onychomycosis
White Superficial Onychomycosis, or WSO for short, will start by infecting the top layer of your toe nail. As the infection progresses, your entire toe nail will becoming a chalky and crumbled surface. Your nail will not become thicker if you have this particular infection.
Proximal Subungual Onychomycosis
Proximal Subungual Onychomycosis, or PSO for short, is the name of a fungal infection that most commonly plagues individuals who suffer from HIV. When you have this fungal infection, it may spread to the top of your foot as well.
Candidal Onychomycosis
Candidal Onychomycosis is a fancy way for saying you have a yeast infection on and under your nails. This particular type of nail fungal infection is actually more common in fingernails than it is in toe nails. It can weaken your nails enough to cause them to separate from your nail bed and it may even cause them to turn a greenish color. Unlike every other type of nail fungal infection, this one does hurt.
As you can see, most fungal nail infections only plague your toe nails. Furthermore, most infections are not painful unless they become serious. For the most part, a person gets the fungal infection treated long before it becomes painful because of how unattractive it makes his or her nails look. The one exception is Candidal Onychomycosis which is painful almost instantly. While a fungal nail infection is not a cause for concern, it is something you should get treated before it becomes serious. (For more information, you can contact Foot First Podiatry Centers)
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