My little 6 month old son has an infected ingrown fingernail. Any idea what to do for it? I can't put antibiotic ointment on it because his hands are always in his mouth, and I don't want to soak it in hot water because his baby skin is more sensitive than an older kid's. FYI, I'm sure it was caused by my nanny clipping his nail a little too short. I was prone to these when I was little and he has my fingernails. :)
I called my pediatrician and while I was waiting to hear back, I soaked my son's finger in warm water with baking soda, and then massaged it a little bit, which drained out most of the pus. (Gross, I know.) I put some hydrogen peroxide on it and then rinsed the finger a minute later. It was practically fine by the next morning, but the doctor told me to come in anyway. Although my home remedy was the right thing to do, it turns out that these little infections sometimes can lead to big problems (like drug-resistant Staph infections) so the doctors is having me use an antibiotic ointment on it for a week. I thought everyone might like to know that this "little" problem ended up being something that did require a doctor's visit.
When my child was about the same age he had a splinter in his finger. It bacamed infected. I had him soak his hand using a tub of warm soapy water and some soap. I sat him on my lap at the table, and dropped some toys in the water for him to reach for. He splashed and played for 5-10 minutes, 4 times a day or so until the infection healed. Just be careful. If the redness area grows he should see the doctor. Infections can spread quickly.
I understand your concern of an antibiotic cream, and soaking in warm water with baking soda or epsom salt for 15 minutes will be very difficult with a 6 month old, as well as sensitive to his delicate skin. My 7 year old son currently has an infected ingrown toenail. He is doing both the above and taking amoxicillin. Please check with your pediatrician on his/her recommended procedures for such a young child. You don't want the infection to spread internally.
This may sound strange, but when I was a kid, my mom always made a paste of baking soda and water, placed it on the ingrown nail, and covered with a bandaide. She did this at night, by morning, the skin was soft, and healed rather quickly. It's worth a shot.
I'm not sure if this will work, but it is worth a shot. Try soaking a cotton ball in Listerine and cleansing the nail a few times a day.
D., I am a nail techncian. The water doesn't have to be hot to soak, warm water with epson salt should help with the ingrown and then you can cut. When cutting nails, cut straight across, not too short and instead of cutting the sides/edges (which cause the ingrown when cut incorrectly), file the edges so they are not sharp. Do not let the infection go too long without seeking doctor's advice if it doesn't get better. Hope this helps, have a great day and enjoy that baby boy! N.
Try lanolin (lansinoh). Since it is safe for baby to ingest it just might help. Stay on top of it so it doesn't get worse & take him to the doc if it doesn't heal soon.
A.
