An ingrown toenail occurs when the nail of a person's toe begins to grow outward from any side into the skin. Often, ingrown toenails can result in infection. While many people can remove their own ingrown toenails and treat minor infections, many cases of ingrown toenails are far too severe for somebody to attempt to treat them on their own.

A podiatrist, or foot doctor is sometimes needed for treatment of stubborn or severe ingrown toenails. If the redness from the toe seems like it is beginning to spread, or if the pain is severe or the nail is infected, then it's best to see a doctor. Sometimes, to cure an ingrown toenail, all that is needed is a little patience and a file. However, some ingrown toenails require medical treatment to cure them.

There's a few causes of ingrown toenails.

The first is wearing shoes that are too small for your toes. This can cause the nails to grow in an abnormal direction, resulting in ingrown nails.

The second cause is cutting your nails in odd directions or angles.

Sometimes the wrong angle can cause the nail to grow into the toe, which can also result in ingrown toenails and pain or discomfort.

Sometimes people are just born with nails that tend to curve on their own when growing, these are the types of ingrown toenails that are hard to treat, because they almost always come back after treatment.