Onychogryphosis Health Dictionary

  1. Health Encyclopedia
  2. Onychogryphosis

Onychogryphosis: From 3 Different Sources

Abnormal thickening, hardening, and curving of the nails that occurs mainly in elderly people.

Onychogryphosis may be associated with fungal infection or poor circulation.

Health Source: BMA Medical Dictionary
Author: The British Medical Association
A distortion of the nail (see under SKIN) in which it is much thickened, overgrown and twisted on itself. This usually affects a toe-nail and is the result of chronic irritation and in?ammation.
Health Source: Medical Dictionary
Author: Health Dictionary
n. gross thickening and hardening of a nail, which becomes elongated and deformed. It may be caused by poor blood supply, injury to the matrix, fungal infection, diabetes, and/or malnutrition.
Health Source: Oxford | Concise Colour Medical Dictionary
Author: Jonathan Law, Elizabeth Martin

Nail

A hard, curved plate on the fingers and toes composed of keratin (a tough protein). Nails grow from an area called the nail bed. At the base of each nail a half-moon shape, the lunula, is crossed by a flap of skin called the cuticle. The surrounding skin is known as the nailfold. A fingernail takes about 6 months to grow from base to tip; toenails take twice as long.

The nails are susceptible to damage through injury, or by bacterial or fungal infections, especially tinea and candidiasis. Sometimes they become abnormally thick and curved: a condition known as onychogryphosis. Nail abnormalities may be a sign of skin disease, such as alopecia areata, psoriasis, and lichen planus, or of more generalized disease, for example iron-deficiency anaemia. Unusual nail colour may indicate disease.

Treatment of nail disorders can be difficult. Creams and lotions seldom penetrate sufficiently; oral medication may take months to be effective.... nail


Health encyclopedia icon Health Encyclopedia

Recent Searches