Laser therapy relieves nagging toe problem.
Dawn* has long been a fitness enthusiast and runner. A few years back, she changed careers, leaving behind the diabetic supply company she founded with her husband to become a personal trainer.
When combined with topical ointments, the treatment has an 80 percent success rate and often leads to noticeable results after just one treatment.
“I’ve worked out my whole life and have always helped my friends train, and I thought, Why don’t I do that for a living?” Dawn relates. “I’m really enjoying it, and I’m learning a lot of new things every day.”
One thing Dawn has learned is how some injuries associated with fitness training and running can seem like one thing when they are in fact another. She realized that recently, after a problem developed with her right big toe.
“When I run, my right big toe hits the tip of my shoe and that caused some damage to the toenail,” Dawn informs. “That toenail turned a slightly different color than all the others, and when you see that, you immediately think it’s a fungus.”
The dermatologist Dawn went to see after the skin under the nail turned black thought the problem was a fungus, too. Dawn was told to treat the toe with a topical antifungal medication, which she did for nine months, but that did not solve the problem.
“It wasn’t getting any better, and I really didn’t know what to do about it until I read an article in Florida Health Care News about Sarasota Foot and Ankle Center,” Dawn explains. “After I read that article, I said, I’m calling them.”
During her initial visit to Sarasota Foot and Ankle Center, Dawn met Arthur D. Clode, DPM, a board-qualified podiatric surgeon who began by testing for fungus. When that test came back negative, Dr. Clode had someone look a little deeper into the biopsy.
“There’s a company called MicroGen Diagnostics that does DNA analysis, so they take one step further than a standard lab,” Dr. Clode informs. “The results we received from them showed that what Dawn had was not a fungus but a bacterial infection.”
The lab results prompted Dr. Clode to prescribe two topical ointments to help kill the bacteria. He also recommended Dawn undergo PinPointe™ FootLaser™ therapy, which is effective in treating fungus as well as bacteria.
In-office PinPointe FootLaser treatments take only a few minutes, during which time the laser is passed over the nail in a crisscross pattern to ensure full coverage. The patient usually feels a warm sensation on their toe but no pain during the procedure.
Afterward, the patient can walk out of the office and resume normal activities without fear of side effects. Dr. Clode recommends the treatment be done once every three months for a year, which is the length of time needed for the nail to grow out.
When combined with topical ointments, the treatment has an 80 percent success rate and often leads to noticeable results after just one treatment. That was the case with Dawn’s blackened big toe.
“I started to notice it was getting better after about three months, and now there is no more black whatsoever,” Dawn reports. “I have a nice, new nail growing now, and it’s thanks to Dr. Clode because he was the one who finally solved the problem.
“That’s why I absolutely one hundred percent recommend him. He’s very knowledgeable, very personal and he was able to get to the bottom of the problem.”
