Treatment of ingrown nail with a special device composed of shape-memory alloy

Ingrown nail is a common nail problem resulting in pain and disability in daily life. Recently, a new treatment modality for an ingrown nail was reported that used a device composed of shape-memory alloy, K-D. The aim of the present study was to determine the efficacy, recurrence rate and complications of K-D. Between June 2010 and September 2012, 24 patients (31 nails) underwent treatment of symptomatic incurved nails with a K-D. Patients were evaluated at pretreatment and during every visit. The mean age of the patients involved was 43.4 years. The mean period of follow up was 161 days. The mean maintenance period was 41 days. The right first toenail was the most common site. Almost ingrown nails healed and the nail deformity was corrected after the procedure. Among the 31 nails, seven of the ingrown nails recurred during follow up (22.6% recurrence rate). The recurrence rate of the patients with stage 1, 2 and 3 ingrown nails was 22.2%, 33.3% and 14.2%, respectively. The majority of patients were very satisfied. There were no side-effects in most patients except loss of nail in one patient. K-D has some advantages such as simple application steps, no deformity after the procedure, high patient satisfaction and obvious effect compared to other non-invasive and invasive methods.