It can happen very quickly: you catch a nail in a car door, stub your toe, or accidentally remove your nail polish and suddenly you're left with a broken nail—in severe cases, you can even separate a nail from the nail bed.
Many things can cause painful split or broken nails, but those nails will heal if you take the right steps.
To understand how nails tear, it helps to know what a nail is. Fingernails and toenails are made up of a nail bed and a nail plate. The nail bed is the soft area of skin beneath the nail plate, which is the hard surface of the nail. Cells on the underside of the nail bed form the nail matrix and produce layers of a protein called keratin; keratin forms the nail plate and anchors it to the nail bed. When the nail tears or separates, the nail matrix grows the new nail.
The ways your nail plate can tear are endless, but the most common way people tear their nails is by cutting them incorrectly — they cut their nails at the wrong angle, which leaves a tear or a hangnail. The nail plate can also separate from the nail bed if it hits between two things, such as a door and a door frame, or if you have a condition that causes it to fall off, such as a fungal infection. Your nails may also be more prone to breaking if you have nail psoriasis, if you use chemicals like acetone to remove nail polish, or if you take certain medications or are undergoing chemotherapy.
Both torn and split nails can be painful and don't heal quickly – you have to wait for them to grow back. But there are some simple steps you can take to help your nail grow back and prevent future tearing and splitting. Read on to learn what you can do to help heal your torn or split nail.
Treatment of broken nails
The best way to treat a torn nail is to let it grow back. You can help ensure that it grows back safely, and you can also take steps at home to reduce pain and discomfort as it grows back.
You have a few options for treating a broken nail: You can tape the broken part in place and then trim it off as the nail starts to grow, or you can cut the broken part right away at a slightly outward angle to encourage the nail to grow back normally. If you try the first option and the tear is small, you can apply clear nail polish to prevent the nail from tearing further and then trim it off as it grows.
If the nail plate is completely separated from the nail bed, there is no way to reattach it; you just have to wait for a new nail to grow. As with a broken nail, you can tape the nail while you wait for the new nail to grow and trim it as needed. You may also want to consider removing the separated nail entirely and bandaging the exposed nail bed while you wait. A doctor can help you determine the best solution for you. If the nail is broken or separated due to an infection, then you should see a doctor for treatment. Keeping the area around your nails dry can help prevent an infection from developing.
If the finger or toe with the broken nail hurts, take an over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medication. If the pain is severe or does not go away, see your doctor.
Nail regrowth
Dealing with split or broken nails can be frustrating. Nails grow at a rate of about 0.004 inches (0.1 millimeters) per day; it can take up to six months for a nail to fully grow back. You can apply a nail hardener to keep your nails strong and help them grow faster, but you should avoid nail products that contain toluene sulfonamide, formaldehyde, alcohol, acetone, or dibutyl phthalate; these chemicals can weaken nails rather than strengthen them.
While your nails are growing back, you can take some simple steps to keep them healthy and prevent future nail injuries. First, wear shoes that don't pinch your toenails—they should be wide enough for your toes to move around in. Second, keep your nails neat and trim them frequently—long nails are more likely to snag and break. Also, avoid biting your nails because this can also increase the likelihood of them breaking.
You can also keep your nails healthy by moisturizing them with lotions and creams that contain humectants such as urea, phospholipids, and lactic acid. Humectants retain moisture in your nails, which helps prevent them from cracking. If you have split or broken nails, wear gloves when washing dishes and cleaning to reduce the chance of infection.
