A study on the surgical treatment of ingrowing toenail with nail excision with chemical matricectomy versus nail excision alone

Objectives: To compare the results of surgical treatment of ingrowing toenail with nail excision with chemical matricectomy versus nail excision alone. Patients and methods: We selected 30 patients of ingrowing toenail for the study. The patients were divided into two groups of 15 patients each. In group I patients, nail avulsion with chemical matricectomy with 88% phenol was done. In group II only nail avulsion was done. Results: In group I patients the surgical success rate was 98% and in group II, the surgical success rate was 86.6%. No patient complained about the cosmetic appearance of toenail after the operation. Conclusions: The technique is easy to perform and is associated with little morbidity and has a success rate of 98%.