How do I treat a fingernail that's been completely torn off?

No help here, I'm just giving you a bump up the page...hopefully someone with some knowledge will notice you!

I don't know how to help either, but that is so gross that I have to hear more.

How did he tear it off? Is it all bloody chunks of raw flesh? Can you take a picture of it and post it here?

Torn off toenail thread - link

i tore my thumbnail off last year, i went to the hospital and i'm glad i did becuse i had ripped the nail bed aand needed three stitches, the most i can say is keep the wound clean and covered

I would dispose of the nail. It is no longer of any use.

you can see my thumb here

Nasty!

Thanks, djjd62! Do you have any pictures of someone with something sharp like a nail or a spike jammed in their eye? Now that would be REALLY cool.

I was working in cat scan years ago at a trauma center and some kid came in after a car accident for a head and facial bone CT. He had an emesis basin taped to his face. After seeing the images come up his eyeball was hanging out and resting on his cheek.

Sorry I got off topic a bit, but I love telling gross stories of things I see at work.

Torn off nail? I'll ask at work tomorrow. Man, that has to hurt.

http://www.medicineonline.com/reference/Health/Medicine/info/Finger-Injuries/

How did this happen? Did he smash his finger, is there a chance of fracture?

Soak periodically in warm salty water solution to keep the wound sterile. between time keep the wound covered with nonstick gauze and bandage.

If pain continues see your doctor.

In order to ascertain how badly he is hurting ask him for sex, If he says yes hes AOK, if no see your doctor the poor buggers dying.

reply
Wow, thanks for the response. For those who have been asking how he did it-we we were loading a motorcycle in the back of a truck, and he had one of the front shocks in his hand. When the bike made it onto the bed of the pick up the front shock depressed, (like a syringe) and his nail (don't ask me how, it's not like they're long nails or anything) got caught in between the top part of the shock and the bottom part of the shock. As the shock compressed, it ripped the nail right out. He was in total shock. He looked at me and said "something bad happened!" Then he started sweating and shaking. I felt so bad for him. For the people who want to know what it looks like-It looks exactly like djjd62's thumb, except its his middle finger (he refused to let me take a pic. of it). I have followed some of the suggestions posted here, and it seems to be getting a little better. The finger is not red or swollen, so thats a good sign. It still looks very nasty though. Thanks again for all the help!

You want to immediately clean the area in running water for about 10 mins, to clean any foreign objects and damaged cell debris from the wound. Then, after cleaning, which is the most important step, then you can wrap it in some gauze. This is to protect the wound from being banged into objects while sleeping, dressing up, cooking, etc.

In 24 hours, check to see if the area around the wound is swollen or hot to the touch. If it is, then it is infected and you'll need antibiotics (go see a doctor). If you still refuse to see a doctor despite it looking infected, it will probably heal on its own anyway, but it will take a much longer time. If it looks like a clean cut with no swelling and no red skin around the wound (the wound itself will be bloody and red obviously), then it probably isn't infected and will heal on its own.


source: my husband is a doctor and my fingernail got ripped off.

Wouldn't it make more sense to treat the finger?

I ripped my nail off yesterday i went to the doctor and they numbed me and fixed it. So it can grow back. He must see a doctor because this type of wound is easy to get infected because we continueously touch things. It either he fix his nail or lose his finger to infection

That person basically haven't returned to a2k after writing this thread (Mon 23 Oct, 2006 03:12 pm). It's likely the finger has healed since that incident seven years ago.

No sweat, nails grow back.
But if he'd lost his arm...

i just got my nail ripped off 2 days ago and i have been keeping it covered and clean, but today i cleaned it with peroxide a little while and it left blisters on my raw nail bed. i know that peroxide bubbles but this is't bubbles its actual blisters. what do i do????

See a doctor?

OMG my boyfriend just ripped his left hand ring finger nail completely out! It's soo gross! Anyways, found this and have to say... thanks for all the info!... You'll never guess what he was doing!.. Loading a motorcycle into the back of a truck! He got his finger caught in the sprocket, he thinks, it's not funny, it hurts so bad I can tell, but when I read this I had to laugh!