[Nail trauma, what is it? and how to treat it?]

Abstract

The nail plate is a layer of keratin that protects the back of the ends of the fingers and toes. It is a system with many important functions, since it stabilises the distal portion of the finger and toe and provides resistance to the fleshy part, thus contributing to the handling of small objects and fine sense of touch. Nail injuries are a reason for visits to Emergency Departments and Primary Care, representing up to 8% of hand emergencies. The inappropriate treatment of these injuries can lead to important aesthetic and functional sequelae. These can be very complex even to correct later (dystrophic nails, decrease in discrimination between 2 points…). The 2 most common lesions are subungual haematoma and subungual avulsion, with their different degrees of adjacent bone involvement.

Keywords: Hematoma subungueal; Lecho ungueal; Nail trauma; Nailbed; Nailbed injury; Subungual haematoma; Trauma uña; Traumatismo ungueal.