9 Serious Health Problems Your Nails Might Warn You About
Kidney disease
Your nails can not only alert you in terms of underlying skin conditions but also when it comes to acute or chronic kidney diseases, warns Dr. Poblete-Lopez says. Both fingernails and toenails can be affected by CKD, with changes and abnormalities in terms of color, texture, shape and thickness.
For instance, the horizontal grooves specific to Beau’s lines can also be a sign of kidney problems. White spots on the nails, brittle or spoon-shaped nails can occur due to kidney disease, but they can also be the result of iron-deficiency anemia.
HIV infection
According to an older 1998 study, more than two-thirds of the 155 HIV-positive participants had some sort of nail abnormality or symptom. One of the most common nail changes in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)–infected patients, is developing blue nails. This strange pigmentation can be caused by the infection itself or by the antiretroviral medicine used in the treatment of HIV.
Other quite common nail changes in people with HIV include clubbing of the fingernails or toenails, bad odor coming from the nails, yellow nails, also referred to as onychomycosis.
Silver poisoning
Argyria is a condition that causes your skin, eyes, internal organs and nails to turn blue or gray, as a result of prolonged exposure to silver. The change in color is unfortunately irreversible. Given that nails don’t have any skin pigment, they are usually among the first victims of silver build-up. People working with silver or those who resort to this element to treat infections or other health problems are also at risk of developing argyria.
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