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Purpose of Review: Nail diseases in infants and children are an uncommon cause of consultation and are often difficult to diagnose and to manage. This review will cover nail diseases that are most commonly seen in clinical practice, including congenital and hereditary disorders and inflammatory, infective, and neoplastic nail diseases. The purpose of the review is to help the reader to recognize nail disorders at an early age and to manage them appropriately., Recent Findings: Two recent large studies have reported the clinical findings of genetic disorders involving the nails, that is, pachyonychia congenita and epidermolysis bullosa. Only a few articles gave a comprehensive review of a disease, as occurred for onychomycosis, while the majority of the reports published in the recent literature involve single cases., Summary: Nail diseases in children and neonates are not easy to diagnose by nonexperts. Basic knowledge of the anatomy and biology of the nail facilitates their diagnosis as the understanding of their pathophysiology. This review gives hints at the most common nail diseases that affect infants and children.

A 7-month-old girl was evaluated for V-shaped ridging of the fingernails consistent with chevron nails. Chevron nails are a normal variant in the pediatric population that is frequently outgrown. This case nicely demonstrates this normal finding that has so rarely been reported in the literature., (© 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Background: Severely incurved toenails are accompanied by deformity of the toenail growth plate. In such a condition, partial removal of the nail and nail bed and simple unfolding of the nail itself frequently result in the recurrence of symptoms. We sought to design and develop a new technique for the treatment of incurved toenail with growth plate deformity and to report the results of treating this disease entity., Methods: Forty consecutive patients (52 cases) underwent treatment of symptomatic incurved toenails with a new technique named matrixplasty. The mean ± SD patient age was 40.3 ± 18.9 years. Last follow-up was at a mean ± SD of 18.0 ± 1.3 months. An American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) forefoot hallux score was assigned, and patients were evaluated before treatment and at last follow-up. Patient satisfaction and the recurrence rate of the deformity were evaluated. For evaluation of improvement in toenail shape, the center to edge angle of the toenail was measured before treatment and at last follow-up. The complication rate was also evaluated., Results: All of the ingrown toenails healed, and the nail deformities were corrected within 3 weeks after the procedure. None of the incurved toenails had recurred by last follow-up. The mean pretreatment AOFAS forefoot hallux score was 72.9, and it improved to 99.6 by last follow-up (P < .001). Every patient was very satisfied or satisfied with the results of treatment. The mean ± SD center to edge angle of the toenail improved from 53.3° ± 9.5° to 15.3° ± 5.2° by last follow-up (P < .001). Minor paronychia, which was managed with local wound dressing and oral antibiotics, was identified in four cases. No other complication was identified., Conclusions: Matrixplasty showed excellent clinical results in the treatment of severe incurved toenail, and this newly developed procedure showed improvement of the deformed toenail and its growth plate.

Background: Clinicians encounter pincer nails at a high incidence among bedridden cases who are free from weight bearing. The mechanical force transmitted by walking and loading may affect the nail configuration. This study was aimed at evaluating the influence of mechanical forces on the nail configuration., Methods: Study 1 was conducted on a sample size of 318 great toenails, with the subjects classified into the following 3 groups: healthy volunteers, participants who were bedridden for less than 3 months, and participants who were bedridden for more than 3 months. Study 2 was conducted in 12 subjects with unilateral loading., Assessments: The configuration of the great toenails, in terms of the curve index (defined as the nail height/nail width), was compared., Results: In study 1, the curve index increased significantly as the duration of the bedridden state became longer (17.5 ± 4.75, 28.9 ± 11.0, 36.4 ± 9.58, respectively). In study 2, the curve index on the nonloaded side was significantly higher than that on the loaded side (40.0 ± 8.63 vs. 27.0 ± 8.39)., Conclusion: Our results suggest that mechanical forces may affect the nail configuration and be involved in the pathophysiology of nail deformities., (Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Patients with partially destroyed fingernails tend to hide them, and such patients often do not find help because fingernails are considered of little functional value. To improve the aesthetic appearance of such nails, a simple excision of the destroyed nail matrix can stimulate the growth of the residual healthy matrix and regenerate the nail. Prerequisite is a healthy nail residue of at least the lunula. An excision of an en bloc, crescent-shaped, full-thickness scar, 5 mm at its greatest width and extending from one lateral nail fold to the other, increases the length of the nail plate. Together with the matrix, the nail will grow about 4 mm distally. A second crescent-shaped excision 1 to 2 months later will further lengthen the nail until it has gained full length. Normal nail growth was achieved in 11 patients who had partially scarred nail beds after mycosis or trauma.

Abnormalities of the nail are not a well recognized feature of palmoplantar pustulosis (PPP). However, in a group of 50 patients with PPP, we found nail dystrophy in 15 (30%). The most frequent pattern was subungual pustulation, present in 10 patients, and progressing to nail destruction in two. Onycholysis and pitting of the nail were present in a few patients. In contrast to psoriasis vulgaris, the rate of linear nail growth in PPP was no greater than in matched normal controls. This is another clinical feature of PPP that separates it from psoriasis vulgaris.

Nail surfaces of toe-nail fragments were analysed by optical profilometry in patients treated with two different dosages of itraconazole: 200 mg continuous dosing for 12 weeks, or a pulse-dose regimen of 1 week per month of 400 mg itraconazole daily for 3-4 months. The use of the latter regimen seemed clinically to increase nail growth, which was accompanied in several patients by the occurrence of nail surface irregularities. This aspect was studied by computerized optical profilometry. Nail beading was characterized by a higher number of peaks and a larger mean roughness value (Ra). Such findings are reminiscent of other nail alterations resulting from a faster matrix turnover. A substantially greater number of peaks and larger Ra were found in the patients receiving the pulse treatment than in those receiving the continuous-dose regimen. Pulse therapy with itraconazole therefore appears to modify the structure of the nail plate, probably as a result of, or in association with, an increased rate of growth.

Fingernail deformities after thermal injury can be very disfiguring and troublesome. The fingernails may be discoloured, cleft or vertically deviated. From the pathophysiology of the nail growth in general, the specific features of the nail deformities after deep burn can be deduced, as can guidelines for the treatment. Over a two-year period, 153 patients with burned hands were treated in the Groningen Burn Centre. Seven of these patients developed abnormal quality and growth pattern of the fingernails. In two patients an effort was made to correct the deformity by incising the dorsal skin at the base of the nail fold, reflecting the nail fold and covering the acquired defect with a full thickness skin graft. Although the patients were satisfied with the results achieved, one year after the operation little or no improvement in the nail growth was found. A cautious policy should be followed in correcting these deformities, since dislocation of the eponychium together with damage to the nail matrix and the nail bed play a complex role in the process of deformation.