Symptoms

Onychomycosis

  • Possible separation of nail from nail bed
  • Buildup of white, green, yellow or black debris under the nail
  • Discoloured nail bed and foul odour
  • Whitening or yellowing of the nail
  • Thickened and crumbling nail
  • Numbness, tingling or pain


Paronychia

  • Redness, pain and swelling
  • Abscesses (pus-filled cavities) may form
  • Duration is usually acute but chronic paronychia has symptoms lasting more than six weeks
  • Symptoms usually occur at the side of the nail fold
  • Occasionally the entire horseshoe of skin around the nail is involved
  • Green colouration of the nail indicates a Pseudomonas bacteria infection


Ingrown nails

  • Redness, swelling and tenderness
  • Pain during walking or running
  • Corners or sides of nails digging into soft tissue

Other symptoms can indicate a more serious underlying condition. The following are some common signs to watch for when examining your nails:

Nail appearance

Potential cause

White spots on nail

Mild trauma; may indicate infection

Thin, reddish-brown vertical lines under the nail

Damage to blood vessels in nail bed

Clear, jelly-filled bubble at nail base

Cyst that requires removal

Dark spots, streaks

Injury; if no injury, melanoma (skin cancer)

Pits, ripples, discoloration; crumbling and separation from nail bed

Psoriatic nails accompanying psoriasis

White nails

Liver diseases 

Half of nail is pink, other half is white 

Kidney diseases

Thick, yellow nails; slow growth

Lung disease

Nail bed is red

Heart conditions 

Nail bed is pale

Anemia

Yellow nails, slightly pink at base

Diabetes

No nail, thick nail, curved nail

Congenital deformities

Triangular half-moon at base of nail, thumb nails partially absent

Nail-Patella Syndrome

Concave, spoon-shaped nail

Plummer-Vinson syndrome

Rough, pitted opaque nail

Alopecia areata

Horizontal white lines

Abnormality in blood vessels beneath nail; may point to other conditions such as pellagra, Hodgkin disease, sickle-cell anemia