nail fungus (Full Version)

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Mark2 -> nail fungus (Dec. 9 2014 21:38:24)

Anyone ever have it? Ever get rid of it? I've had it on my thumb nail for over a year. Incredibly frustrating.



estebanana -> RE: nail fungus (Dec. 10 2014 10:34:09)

You have to go to a dermatologist. They will give it a treatment. In some cases it means having the nail chipped out of the nail bed, it does not hurt they have a special clipper. Then they put a fungicide on it. You should have someone look at it.

I've had it on my big toe.



Mark2 -> RE: nail fungus (Dec. 10 2014 15:48:27)

Ya,
I went to the doc and she said she had a pill but it messes up your liver....cure is worse than the problem. I've tried the topical stuff too. I've lost the entire nail at least once, and it still grows back funky.



Chilli Fingers -> RE: nail fungus (Dec. 11 2014 0:25:11)

gross, and we wonder why the ladies arn't more active on this forum [&:]



Mark2 -> RE: nail fungus (Dec. 11 2014 19:33:22)

Sorry to offend your delicate sensibilities but I can assure you that any flamenco guitar player be they male or female would be interested in curing this condition. If you don't think so rip off your thumb nail and play some thumb heavy material.



laughingstock -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 1 2016 7:45:38)

I think I may have developed some on my RT index finger after a prolonged use of fiberglass wrapping and super-glue. I had a doctor (informally) look at it and he thinks it may just be a bruise, but it has a pretty distinct greenish hue to it. I've read up on it and it sounds like a rather nightmarish situation. He also mentioned the medication that destroys your liver. Anyone else have experience with this?



Ricardo -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 1 2016 8:03:38)

Take your meds with a shot of tequila... Your liver regenerates.



Mark2 -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 2 2016 17:00:44)

My advise is don't get it. I took the pill a little over a year ago and it cured it but it came back. Doc said once you have it, it's probably for life. I have no useable thumb nail. Sometimes no thumb nail at all. The Albanico ain't happening. I've moved on to home remedies such as soaking in listerine with a little lemon juice, tried tea tree oil, and tried soaking in warm water with epson salt. So far no dice. I still play but gigging is pretty much out. Playing for dance-forget it. I've started doing a few rock gigs here and there, which has been pretty fun, and my picado is getting a little better..........


I still hopeful-I'm on Lester's waiting list and if he calls me and says it's time, I'm going for it. If I didn't think it would get better there would be no point in buying an expensive guitar. I had heard that using fake nails or other nail stuff could cause this but it had been about ten years of not doing that before I contracted it. I've only got it on the one nail and am hoping it doesn't spread. This would be a disaster for a person who was making a living playing. Pray to the god of compas it doesn't happen to you!



Piwin -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 2 2016 23:26:49)

This is the first I'm hearing of this problem. Sorry man, sounds like a real pain.

This is going to sound stupid but have you tried using those finger picks you wear like a ring? You could take a large IMA finger pick, shave it down to size and see if that could work as some sort of replacement for the nail until you get it back. Just spitballing.



Dudnote -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 3 2016 1:46:11)

Rum is the cure to all ills. Gaffer tape a small bottle of white rum onto your thumb and change the rum daily. No living organism, fungus or otherwise, will still be alive after 2 weeks.



JuanDaBomb -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 3 2016 5:19:51)

I heard a foot doctor on a youtube video say, "Medication will work, but you know what else will also work? Vicks VapoRub. Both will take 18 months". Has anyone else heard of the VapoRub therapy before?



Kiko_Roca -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 3 2016 14:09:50)

That's lousy. I'm sorry to hear. I haven't been able to do an up strum with the thumb for about 3 years now thanks to an injury and tendonitis. So I can somewhat sympathize, though I know it's not the same. I hope something works out for you. Have you tried bleach?



Dudnote -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 3 2016 22:57:47)

A bunch of home remidies. The more often you do these the quicker you're gonna win.
http://homeremedyshop.com/17-home-remedies-for-toenail-fungus/



estebanana -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 4 2016 2:20:15)

How many doctors have you seen for this? If one I would get another opinion. If you are getting it on your right hand thumbnail only, what kinds of daily routine do you have and what does the thumb come in contact with?

Is it possible the guitar itself is fungal and transmitting it back to your thumb? Fungus grows on anything wetted with body sweat that stays. You should also check your guitar case for possible fungus living in there and anything related to your guitar, a moldering music book etc. Any of those things.

You can also swab the bass string with alcohol or bleach water solution to make sure the string is not growing fungus in your perspiration and body oil which holds moisture. Inspect the inside of the guitar, molds and fungi can develop in the upper bout under your chin. People who perspire on the guitar usually get that area wet and the moisture can slowly permeate the guitar and cause mold to grow up under the bout where you never see it. It can be killed by swabbing the area with a bleach water solution, but don't just do that until you research how. Or take it to someone.

If the case is the suspect, leave it out in the sun open for three of four whole days and that should kill it. Or wash it with with strong detergent and blow dry it and vacuum it- then set it in the sun for a week.

Small organisms like mites can grow in case plush, they might be carrying a fungus. Case mites grow because they live off the moisture on the guitar when it is put away wet. Species of mites that thrive in cases normally are not a problem for the guitar itself, but they will eat glue and cork if they can get at it. Usually it means the glue in the case under the plush, but they eat for example Saxophone pad material. Always dry your axe after you perspire a lot after a session.


The fungus under your nails might not live out side the human body, but it might. I don't know, but I would look into the possibility that something related to your guitar is cross contaminating your nail.

I had a teacher in Berkeley who is a professional player who had this and badly. Like I said in the first post I made last year- He went to a dermatologist who referred him to a specialist who did this minor surgery by removing the entire nail with a special clipper. Then the doctor used a strong topical anti fungal medicine and the nail - it grew back in the nail bed straight and true. It took a few months but the ordeal was done. The doctor was persnickety that the nail bed be kept clean while the nail grew back. Perhaps the pill diminishes the fungus, but does not root it out totally. I would go to more than one doctor, sometimes they miss stuff. I would also ask about contamination in your gear and if your gear can hold a fungus that infects your nails.

I hope you get rid of it, keep working the problem.



estebanana -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 4 2016 3:01:56)

I think you should also look on the bright side. You took the pill, your mom did not find out and you never got pregnant.

You are very lucky, and you still have a liver.



Mark2 -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 4 2016 18:09:42)

Dudnote-thanks for that link. There is some stuff there I haven't tried yet. estebanana thanks as well. All who posted support or advice, thanks, it helps. Piwin, yeah finger picks are the last resort-I'm not there yet. Juan, Vicks for 18 months, whew, also a last resort. Kiko, bleach is on my list for sure. Something's got to kill it. I had not considered the guitar/case angle. Seems a bit far fetched but who knows. I have not changed the strings on my conde for a few months. Gonna do that, and clean the guitar too. Since I'm a lefty, it's my left thumb nail, not that that matters. I didn't need to go to a doc to remove the nail-it fell off by itself a few times now. In the last few weeks I've seen some improvement. It might have been the tea tree oil, or this over the counter med with some kind of acid it in. I'm still far away though from having a healthy nail. I am going to get a second opinion as well. My hands are in ocean water a lot cause my number one hobby is surfing, but I hope that's not the cause. I'd think it would have affected my other nails but who knows.

I've got a few things yet to try so I'm not even close to giving up. I do look on the bright side-I had quit playing for dance more than ten years ago, so it's not like playing flamenco is my life. I do play at home almost every day, and always seem to find myself practicing flamenco techniques or falsetas, playing along with cantes, or figuring out something related to flamenco as opposed to playing electric or grabbing a pick. I've been studying some jazz as well, as that doesn't have to involve the thumb as much. The pill did make me sick at one point, but I took it anyway, and didn't get pregnant or need a liver transplant. So, yeah, life is good.
And when it does get better, doing alzapua, the marote ras, or just hitting a note with the thumb, is going to be all the sweeter.


quote:

ORIGINAL: estebanana

I think you should also look on the bright side. You took the pill, your mom did not find out and you never got pregnant.

You are very lucky, and you still have a liver.



estebanana -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 5 2016 2:32:25)

If you are surfing in an area where there is raw sewage discharge you can get infections and fungus, but thanks to the Surfrider Foundation that is not happening on the West Coast. If anything I think surfing would be good for it.

Have you tried topical treatments like Lamisil? I used it for fungus between my toes and it worked very quickly. Getting a second medical opinion seems wise.

I did a little reading and see that there are also dietary triggers and immune system issues. But I woudl ask a doctor about the cross contamination possibility and rule it out at least.

This is another thought, your thumbs PH might be changed due to the metal of the strings and your body chemistry reacting, it could be making a better environment for fugus to reccur- ?? I would ask about that too. Anything to get the doctor thinking deeper. I used garlic first, and it was effective, but stinky foot is never welcome in small room.

One more thing, when my teacher had the issue the doctor did a minor cuticle surgery, really just a reshaping and strategic clipping of the cuticle. When I had lost my own toe nail , it grew back in split in half. This was dangerous because the nail kept getting caught on things and breaking back, painful. I did a cuticle surgery myself after looking at the way the nail was growing. One side of the cuticle was thick and oppressing the growth forcing a lop sided nail. I simply used good nail cutters to trim that back and remove the uneven cuticle, it hurt a bit. After that the nail grew back in one piece.

Ive lost the right thumb nail before too hammer smash. Maybe you just need to hit your thumb with a hammer and reboot the nail bed !!! [:D]



Mark2 -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 5 2016 16:54:39)

Yeah my funky nail is split. Horrific. As far as the hammer, once I slammed my index in a car door. It turned the nail black and swelled till I had to go to the doc. It was incredibly painful. the doc burned a hole in the nail with some kind of heat gun to relieve the pressure. When that heat went through the nail THAT was some pretty intense discomfort. I asked the doc why it was so painful and she just said you got a lot of nerves in your fingers.......I'll have to pass on the hammer to the thumb nail cure.



laughingstock -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 5 2016 22:51:04)

Well my doctor thinks it's fungus so I will be put on the pill. Pretty discouraged from what I'm reading as I was just really starting to get back into playing after a long hiatus. Any way you spell it it is going to be a long road to recovery. I can still play a little bossa/jazz but doing picado is out of the question. I have to break the news to all the dancers who were happy finally have a guitar player. It genuinely makes me sad- I know we rag on them a lot but I was looking forward to getting together with ppl who love Flamenco.



Dudnote -> RE: nail fungus (Oct. 6 2016 4:40:53)

Man, I feel your pain and frustration!! But don't go relying only on the pill and on the pill only - the more chemical weapons you can throw at that fungus over the next few months the better.

Good luck!!



Mark2 -> RE: nail fungus (Jan. 11 2017 22:38:26)

Update:I got a second opinion and was prescribed a different pill. It's called Fluconazole. You take one a week for a year. You don't have to monitor your liver because it's supposed to be really mild. I've been on it for about two months or so and the nail is growing out looking good so far. The other pill, the one that can cause liver failure, is called Terbinafine. And Lester finally called and soon I will be the proud owner of one of the very few Lester Devoe left handed blancas. 2017 is looking up!



Piwin -> RE: nail fungus (Jan. 12 2017 2:41:45)

Olé! Hope it keeps up!



Mark2 -> RE: nail fungus (Jan. 12 2017 17:53:30)

Thanks Piwin!!



laughingstock -> RE: nail fungus (Jan. 14 2017 6:13:49)

I never took the Terbinafine- some details between the insurance and pharmacy that I never quite understood, BUT I soaked my nails everyday for at least an hour a day in listerine- it's actually painful. I did this while being on-line or watching TV. Anytime I wasn't using my hand for something. I did this for about a month at least. When I wasn't soaking my nails I applied Tea tree oil liberally and kept them short. The fungus seems to have gone away entirely. Man, A DeVoe. That's great. Hope everything works out.



Mark2 -> RE: nail fungus (Jan. 14 2017 15:07:45)

Wow, that is great news! Another effective treatment!


quote:

ORIGINAL: laughingstock

I never took the Terbinafine- some details between the insurance and pharmacy that I never quite understood, BUT I soaked my nails everyday for at least an hour a day in listerine- it's actually painful. I did this while being on-line or watching TV. Anytime I wasn't using my hand for something. I did this for about a month at least. When I wasn't soaking my nails I applied Tea tree oil liberally and kept them short. The fungus seems to have gone away entirely. Man, A DeVoe. That's great. Hope everything works out.



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