Just lately we have had several people in our clinic who had suffered for many months, sometimes years, with ingrown toenails. If the nail is only mildly ingrown, home remedies can help, but if it lasts longer than a couple of weeks, becomes infected, or keeps reoccurring every few months, you should see a Chiropodist. Sometimes the ingrown nail can be easily solved in the clinic on one visit. Some ingrown nails do need to be surgically removed. The procedure we use is relatively painless, requires very little recovery time, and is covered by most health insurance plan. In most cases only a small amount of nail needs to be removed, leaving you with a normal looking nail once it has healed. Our procedure is 96% successful at stopping the nail from growing in again. See the tips below, and call us for an appointment if you are still struggling with your ingrown nail. http://health.howstuffworks.com/skin-care/nail-care/tips/treat-an-ingrown-nail3.htm