The difference between subungual bleeding and onychomycosis

There are many pathological reactions on human fingernails and toenails, such as onychomycosis and paronychia. Onychomycosis is mostly caused by fungal infection, but onychomycosis also has a certain degree of hereditary nature. However, there is another type of nail symptom that is somewhat similar to onychomycosis, which is subungual bleeding, because it will form bruises on the nails. For those who are not clear about the difference between subungual bleeding and onychomycosis, you should read the following article.

The difference between subungual bleeding and onychomycosis

Subungual bleeding occurs suddenly, and then petechiae and ecchymosis can be seen under the nail. As the nail grows, the petechiae and ecchymosis will grow outward with the nail. It will take about half a year or nine months for the nail to grow out completely, and then you can just cut it off.

Onychomycosis refers to the color change of the entire nail, thickening of the nail, and debris under the nail. If a mycological examination is performed, it can be seen that the fungus is positive. No treatment is required for subungual bleeding. In addition, onychomycosis does require treatment. The source of onychomycosis is often transmitted from athlete's foot. First, you must treat the athlete's foot to kill this very large fungus reservoir, and then treat the onychomycosis. Itraconazole capsules or terbinafine hydrochloride tablets are the first choice for antifungal treatment.

What are the types of onychomycosis?

1. Proximal subungual type

This type is less common and is usually secondary to paronychia. First, the wrinkles near the nail plate will turn white, then gradually expand to form spots, eventually leading to partial loss of the nail plate and spreading to the entire nail. This main type of onychomycosis is caused by Trichophyton rubrum and Trichophyton rosea.

2. Distal Subungual Type

The initial symptoms are mainly irregular small white spots on the distal end of the nail and the nail surface, which will then turn into dull gray spots, gradually turn into yellow-brown, and finally develop into black. After a while, the nail plate will deteriorate, and the accumulation of keratin and debris under the nail will cause the nail bed to thicken, and eventually the nail plate will atrophy, and occasionally there will be bleeding symptoms.

3. White superficial type

Among the main types of onychomycosis, this type is common on the fingernails and toenails. The main symptoms are white spots or white patches on the surface of the nail plate, and the diseased nails are relatively brittle and can usually be scraped off. This type of disease is mostly caused by gypsum-like Trichophyton or mold-like fungi, Fusarium and Aspergillus.

The above content introduces the types of onychomycosis. I think you should now have some understanding of these three types. Once you suffer from onychomycosis, you should go to the hospital for a scientific examination to find out what type of onychomycosis you have and then receive appropriate treatment.