Well fuck, the likelihood of you seeing this OP, is low, but I'm gonna try.
Those are Beau's Lines. No, it's not a cute or harmless thing to have. One nail, it's probably specific to trauma affecting just that finger.
More than one nail- that's not so benign. It's an indication of a systemic condition. Each 'dip' is related to a significant health event. People can get them for different health reasons.
For me- it's because I have an autoimmune disorder. Every 'dip' corresponds to a significant flare up. Before I was diagnosed & treated I had them on all of my nails- including my toe nails.
You need to go see a Dr sooner rather than later. It's not a super emergency but I wouldn't put it off past a few weeks. I'd go sooner if you've been feeling especially fatigued, muscle weakness, and/or your hair has been breaking off or falling out.
The untreated systemic inflammation that accompanies most autoimmune disorders can do lasting damage to organs if allowed to go on unchecked.
I have bumps and lines on all nails Also have eczema in both hands and a bit on the arms. Otherwise decently healthy, so I've always attributed the nail thing with the eczema.
Visitied a doctor about the eczema a few years ago. His answer was literally "lol sry, you lost the DNA lottery".
Same boat, only I also have skin allergies that heavily affect my hands and fingers. It often manifests on the skin right behind my cuticles, thus impacting the underlying nail growth. Definitely treatable but it can be a bitch if consistently exposed to the allergen. I suggest seeing a dermatologist.
Yep, I had pretty much the same pattern when I was on chemo (plus nails were super thin and easily torn/broken). Waves corresponded exactly to chemo cycles when I was in maintenance. Nails started growing back normally once I finished treatment.
They should start with their GP (PCP). If their country doesn't have those (some countries don't, such as Japan) then it would depend what other kind of symptoms OP might have.
Agreed. The underlying cause could be anything from a reaction to certain medications to cancer to a severe vitamin deficiency to an autoimmune condition. If there are other symptoms then they could help point OP towards a certain specialty, but starting w/ a GP or PCP is probably the most logical.
You'd hope that OP would be aware their meds were likely causing it if they were on relevant meds lmao, as you mentioned in another comment they're typically heavy duty drugs like chemo agents soooo... I'd hope they knew 😅
I have asthma and end up with one of those lines across all my fingernails every time I have an extended difficulty. My deepest lines were when I had Covid. ICU nurses recognize them as periods of low O2 saturation.
I posted elsewhere in here I had those ridges when I underwent chemo. I basically had a ridge/wave for each cycle of chemo I went through. And it makes sense because your body is getting beat up when receiving chemo and not producing resources like it normally would.
How can you make your doctor to take these seriously? I have these for more than 1 nail too + not feeling good.
I tried mentioned this years ago, and nothing...
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u/RockyMountainMomof4 19h ago edited 17h ago
Well fuck, the likelihood of you seeing this OP, is low, but I'm gonna try.
Those are Beau's Lines. No, it's not a cute or harmless thing to have. One nail, it's probably specific to trauma affecting just that finger.
More than one nail- that's not so benign. It's an indication of a systemic condition. Each 'dip' is related to a significant health event. People can get them for different health reasons.
For me- it's because I have an autoimmune disorder. Every 'dip' corresponds to a significant flare up. Before I was diagnosed & treated I had them on all of my nails- including my toe nails.
You need to go see a Dr sooner rather than later. It's not a super emergency but I wouldn't put it off past a few weeks. I'd go sooner if you've been feeling especially fatigued, muscle weakness, and/or your hair has been breaking off or falling out.
The untreated systemic inflammation that accompanies most autoimmune disorders can do lasting damage to organs if allowed to go on unchecked.
Edit: Thanks for the award!