Paronychia

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Infection - skin around the nail

• Skin lesion located in the skin around the nail, often at the cuticle or at the site of a hangnail or other injury
• Painful
• Onset sudden (bacterial) or gradual (fungal, mixed infection)
• May persist (fungal, mixed infection)
• May be acute or chronic
• Localized redness
• Localized swelling
• Pus-filled blisters (especially with bacterial infection)
• Swelling of the finger or the cuticle
• Nail changes
• Discoloration
• Distorted shape
• Detached

The health care provider primarily bases the diagnosis on the appearance of the skin lesion.

Aspiration and culture of pus or fluid from the area may reveal the organism causing the infection.

Review Date: 04/30/2005
Reviewed By: Jonathan Kantor, M.D., Department of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.