A callus is a hardened and thickened area of dead skin that often develops around the heel, ball of the foot and/or the toes. Callus has a rubbery feel to it and may appear a pale yellow colour, though if the skin is dry, can feel very hard, have a white appearance and may even develop cracks. Callus can vary greatly in size and may span your entire heel, or just a coin-size patch on the side of your toe. As callus is formed from dead skin cells and areas of callus contain no nerve endings, meaning they have no feeling. Any sensations you experience when touching a callus are from the healthy underlying skin.
Developing callus is actually a response to either repeated friction and excess pressure. By developing thicker and firmer skin in a high-impact area, your body is protecting itself from further damage like skin breaks which would otherwise leave you vulnerable to infection. Hence, callus often doesn’t cause any problems or pain. Some examples of causes include:
When a callus grows too thick, however, it can put excess pressure on the healthy skin beneath and cause irritation, tenderness and difficulty comfortably wearing shoes.
While many won’t need to seek treatment for their callus, treatment is indicated when the skin beneath the callus becomes painful, uncomfortable, or limits your ability to comfortably wear shoes or carry out activities. If you have diabetes or any conditions that impact your ability to feel, it is also very important that you keep your callus well managed as the dead skin means your sensation is diminished further. As highly-skilled podiatrists, we are able to safely, effectively and painlessly remove the bulk of the callus in the clinic, during your appointment. A small layer should be left intact to continue to protect your skin as per its original intent. Under no circumstances should you try to cut the callus off by yourself using sharp instruments. Improper techniques can damage the healthy surrounding skin, resulting in cuts and infection. If callus is an ongoing issue for your feet, we’ll conduct an assessment to determine the cause(s) of the callus and advise you on how to reduce the onset of callus formation in the future.
We’ve welcomed the Nu-Tek low-level laser into our podiatry clinic. Here's how you tell if it could be the answer to your foot
pain.
Otherwise known as radial pressure wave therapy, shockwave therapy is a device held by our podiatrists and positioned against your foot or leg at the site of your injury.
We can transform the appearance of toenails to look healthy and clear in three ways, and as fast as in one appointment. Here's how.
Tingling or numbness in your feet and legs during or after exercise can be an odd sensation. If you’re prone to experiencing it, the most common reasons are related to pressure on nerves or problems with your circulation.
Does wearing high heels really come at a cost to our feet? If you’re wondering what effects - if any - high heels may be having on your feet, here’s the inside scoop from our podiatrists.
It’s important to not only use an evidence-based treatment plan to help you get the best outcomes for your foot and leg pain, but to help you see the best results in the shortest time. That’s the reason we’ve invested in shockwave.
Heel pain is our specialty here at Perform Podiatry. We now have Low-Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) and Shockwave Therapy to
help you get the best results from your treatment.
We treat a lot of ingrown toenails here at the Auckland Ingrown Toenail Clinic. So, with approximately 10% or more of the adult population harbouring a fungal nail infection, it’s not uncommon that we see many ingrown toenails where a stubborn nail fungus has also infiltrated the nail. So how can you tell, what can […]
Shockwave therapy is a gold standard treatment used to help achieve the best clinical outcomes for musculoskeletal injuries and pain – and we’re very proud to now offer it to our patients here at Perform Podiatry.
While many of the cases we see here at the Auckland Ingrown Toenail Clinic are fairly standard, there are a few that vary greatly from the ‘norm’, and could have resulted devastating consequences if they had been left untreated under the hopes that the ingrown nail would “go away on its own”, something many people […]
They may be small, but verrucas, also known as plantar (foot) warts, are much more than just a minor annoyance. They can be painful to walk on and extremely persistent, making your day to day life a lot less pleasant or comfortable. As one of Auckland’s leading podiatry clinics that specialise in ingrown toenails, we […]
Not all pedicures are the same. For more than just aesthetic touch-ups, a medical pedicure by a podiatrist ensures your feet are cared for with expert attention, leaving you feeling safe and confident.
Ingrown toenails can be painful and uncomfortable, so identifying the ‘red flags’ of ingrown nails early on can be helpful in getting prompt treatment and reducing the risk of complications. So what are the top red flags you should be looking out for? One: Persistent Pain and Discomfort One of the most significant red flags […]
Hip dysplasia in babies can be concerning for parents. It occurs when the hip joint doesn’t develop properly, leading to instability and potential dislocation, either present at birth or developing soon after.
Dealing with an ingrown toenail can be a painful and frustrating experience, with many people opting to have ingrown toenail surgery to find lasting relief. But is ingrown toenail surgery painful? And if it is, is it really worth the discomfort? Do You Really Need Ingrown Toenail Surgery? The first thing you must consider when […]
Foot pain can severely impact daily life, limiting mobility and causing constant discomfort. Promptly seeing the right health professional can make all the difference in starting your recovery journey.
With the new school year approaching, our podiatrists are advising parents on buying kids' school shoes. Traditionally, this involves shopping in-store and considering factors like fit and support.
For many Kiwis, ingrown toenails are a persistent and painful condition that significantly impacts their daily life. While some cases can be managed with conservative measures like trimming back the nail carefully, either at home or with the help of your podiatrist (recommended) there are instances where a more permanent solution is required. The Partial […]
Foot and ankle pain can not only be debilitating, but also affects both our mobility and our overall quality of life.
As we get older, certain tasks get that little bit harder – whether it’s getting your shoes on, opening a jar, or reaching your feet to trim your toenails.
Whether you’re in the office or working remotely, a lot of our workforce spends a significant portion of their day sitting at a desk, often in front of a computer.
Engaging in sports and physical activities can bring joy and numerous health benefits. However, just because you’re staying active, regardless of whether you’re doing it at a professional level or recreationally, does not mean that you’re immune to foot conditions like ingrown toenails. Ingrown toenails can be particularly bothersome when you live an active lifestyle, […]
Snow sports in New Zealand, like skiing and snowboarding, are thrilling. Prepare your body to minimize risk, whether in Queenstown or North Island fields.
Ingrown toenails are a painful and frustrating condition, and while this holds true for everyone, this is particularly applicable to the elderly population. As we grow older, the risk of developing ingrown toenails increases due to various factors such as changes in nail growth, foot structure, and reduced flexibility which leaves us unable to reach […]
If you consider ingrown toenails to be the most debilitatingly painful problem given that it involves such a seemingly small nail, you’re not alone. These are the exact same thoughts shared by most people who come into our ingrown toenail clinic to have their ingrown nails professionally cared for – and often to get rid […]
Dealing with foot pain is a challenging and uncomfortable experience for most.
For those undergoing ingrown toenail surgery, it can feel like a massive weight has been lifted off of your shoulders (or toes), finally giving you much-needed relief from the pain and discomfort. And as with any minor surgical procedure, having proper care after your procedure is essential for a smooth and speedy recovery. To ensure […]
With winter well and truly here, we find ourselves bidding farewell to sandals and embracing cosy merino socks. However, for podiatrists like us, the arrival of winter also means an increase in patients seeking help for specific foot problems that arise due to the colder temperatures. To help, here are our valuable podiatry insights into […]
Pregnancy is an incredibly exciting time, but also one that is full of the unexpected – and that includes all sorts of pregnancy aches and pains. And due to the body undergoing significant changes, such as hormonal and weight changes, included in those pains is the increased risk of developing ingrown toenails. Here are the […]
Had a previous experience with orthotics where they weren’t that comfortable, didn’t fit your shoes well, or didn’t do what they were meant to?
Ingrown toenails are undoubtedly painful and frustrating, especially if you continue to get them over and over. While there are many causes of ingrown toenails, such as picking or pulling at the nails, or trimming the toenails too far down the sides of the nail to give them a curved appearance, one causative factor that […]
Blisters: they’re an enemy that most of us are far too familiar with – often accompanied by a fantastic new pair of shoes that we were initially very excited about. Instead, we’re left in pain and uncomfortable, searching for anything we can place over the blisters to cover them up and stop the stinging. Blisters […]
Noticed an area of red, swollen skin at the side of your baby’s toenail and wondering if it’s possible that they’ve developed an ingrown toenail? It absolutely is – we’ve treated ingrown nails in infants as young as three months old – and it can happen earlier than that, too. Signs Your Baby Has An […]
You call it having smelly or stinky feet, we call it bromodosis. Unpleasant foot odour is a relatively common, albeit often embarrassing, problem that affects approximately one in five people. It occurs when sweat and bacteria accumulate on the feet, creating an unpleasant odour. While foot odour is not usually a serious medical condition given […]
Just like you’re reading this article now, for many people with an ingrown toenail, particularly if it’s their first time with one, they’ll also head online to seek out the best way to treat an ingrown toenail. And after hearing some interesting feedback from our patients in terms of their online search results, we decided […]
Heel spurs are a hot topic in our clinic – particularly around whether they’re the underlying cause of a person’s ongoing or recurring heel pain. There’s a lot of confusion and misconceptions around heel spurs, especially in relation to plantar fasciitis heel pain. Here’s what you should know about heel spurs from the heel pain […]
As a clinic specialising in ingrown nail care and treatment, we often see patients who have been battling with an ingrown toenail for many weeks and come to us to finally get rid of the problem. During the appointment, it’s surprisingly common to hear: “but I went to my doctor and got antibiotics – I’m […]
Getting spontaneous waves of burning feelings in your feet? Burning feet are keeping you awake at night? It can be quite alarming to feel unusual sensations moving through your feet, especially when you can’t pinpoint a specific cause or trigger. This is a concern for many of our patients, who aside from feeling burning through […]
While most of the time our patients are confident about an ingrown toenail diagnosis, we thought we’d share the case of a recent patient who thought she had a very painful ingrown toenail – only to discover that she actually had a corn in the area where an ingrown toenail would normally be found. The […]
Summer is here and many of our patients have launched into summer workouts, meeting their fitness goals – and just generally enjoying their time outdoors and getting out in nature. But while working out feels like the most important (and often most difficult) part of getting started, did you know that your recovery after exercise […]
There’s a lot that comes to mind when we think of diabetes, and for most people, the risks to their feet and ingrown toenails are not one of them. Yet as podiatrists that specialise in treating ingrown nails, seeing a diabetic with ingrown nails, particularly if they’ve had more than one in the past, rings […]
We all know the feeling of having a knot somewhere in our muscles, whether that’s in our calves, legs or elsewhere in our body. It’s that tender spot that you push down on and feel instant pain that often radiates around. Most people will try to massage it, or have a spouse help, but what […]
Having thick toenails can be frustrating, disheartening and painful for several reasons. They can be extremely difficult to cut through, can lessen the room in the toe box of your shoe and become painful – and can make wearing open sandals that show off the toes unappealing. Thickened toenails often become discoloured and can look […]
Learning that you have fragile bones can be concerning, and for many, leave them with a lot of questions: Why have I got fragile bones? What does having fragile bones mean? What are my risks? What can I be doing to improve my bone health? With many of the patients we see and treat being […]
We recently had a patient come in who was experiencing her very first ingrown toenail – and initially, the cause of it was a bit of a mystery. She had relatively flat nails (compared to the typical excessively curved nails we often see with ingrown toenails), her shoes were roomy and spacious at the toe […]
If you have ever seen a child on a Jolly Jumper (also known as baby bouncers or jumperoos), you might know the look of delight on their face whilst they bounce away. In recent years, however, Jolly Jumpers have come under scrutiny as to whether they may do more harm than good when it comes […]
Noticing some slight redness, irritation or swelling on the side of your toenail, especially if it’s still mild and in its early stages, may seem like no big deal. Some people presume that when the nail grows in by itself, it can grow right out. Unfortunately, ingrown toenails rarely get better on their own – […]
We were recently having a conversation with a patient who was advised that soaking her foot in Epsom salts would fix her ingrown toenail. While it helped her get some temporary relief from the pain, the pain kept returning every time – until three months had passed and her ingrown nail pain was worse than […]
As parents, it’s only natural to be concerned about our children, want them to grow healthy and strong, and want to promptly address any health issues so they can go about their days without being held back by pain or discomfort. When it comes to the feet and legs, however, it can be difficult to […]
There’s a lot of information out there about ingrown toenails, and unfortunately, some of it is not accurate. Which, when you’re struggling with an ingrown nail and the methods you’re reading online aren’t working, can be very frustrating, disheartening, and painful. So today, we’ve debunked some of the top ingrown nail myths that we hear […]
Noticing bluish veins growing darker and more prominent in your legs is a cause of concern for many. But what do they mean, why is this happening now, and what can you do to treat or prevent them? Today, our podiatrists are sharing what you need to know about spider veins and varicose veins on […]
If you’re an avid skier, snowboarder, soccer player, or have a tendency to stub your toe, you won’t be a stranger to the dark brown bleeding beneath the surface of your nail that we medically refer to as a subungual haematoma. But with New Zealand having one of the highest rates of melanoma in the […]
Whether it’s a planned holiday or an unexpected period of sickness for yourself or someone in your household, getting back to exercise or rejoining your friends at the gym is something that many people look forward to greatly, giving a good physical and mental boost. There’s just one problem we see – many people take […]
When it comes to ingrown toenails, there are a lot of questions that we get asked every day. From the common questions like why on earth they’ve affected you and how you can prevent the pain from ever coming back, to whether epsom salts can fix ingrown toenails, we’ve taken a handful of your FAQs […]
When you hear about your friend’s orthotics from the pharmacy helping cushion their feet, your colleague’s new pair of shoes coming with in-built orthotics for support, or your young niece’s orthotics that stopped her from in-toeing, understanding how orthotics could help you recover from or prevent injuries when you’re playing sports can get really confusing. […]
If you’ve had an ingrown toenail arise out of seemingly nowhere, and other members of your family have had ingrown toenails in the past, you may be wondering if ingrown toenails are genetic and if you’re going to keep getting them for years to come. Here’s a look into how and why ingrown toenails can […]
When it comes to children’s feet, it can be hard to know if what we’re seeing is normal, or if there’s cause for concern. As podiatrists that work extensively with children’s feet, we often have parents bringing their kids in for assessment and starting the conversation by saying “…so I noticed this happening more lately, […]
Will antibiotics fix an ingrown toenail? If I’ve had an ingrown nail removed, should I have antibiotics? These are all good questions, and ones we get asked often by our patients with painful – and often recurring – ingrown toenails. Today our podiatrists share what you should know about ingrown toenails and antibiotics. Will Antibiotics […]
So you’ve got a splinter stuck in your foot and despite trying with tweezers or other home first aid tactics, you can’t get it out. So, what can you do? Here’s the lowdown on splinters and when to seek help from our podiatrists. Do Splinters Need To Be Removed? Splinters can be caused by a […]
When you’re busy at work with a seemingly never-ending task list, foot pain slowing you down and holding you back is the last thing you need. Foot pain can have a wide range of causes that require very different care at home, and treatment to get fixed, which is why it’s important to know the […]
Is your ingrown toenail not healing? Maybe you’ve been soaking it in Epsom salts, removed the nail yourself, had antibiotics to help treat it or have left it to get better on its own? No matter what you have tried, if you’ve had an ingrown toenail for over a week and the pain is still […]
So you’ve got toe pain starting but you’re not sure if it’s an ingrown toenail. What are the signs you should be looking for if it’s an ingrown toenail and what else could be the cause of your toe pain? Our ingrown nail specialists share what we look for in an early ingrown toenail. What […]
Looking forward to a retirement filled with… anything you like? Whether you’re retired or nearing it, it’s an exciting time that many spend decades looking forward to, knowing you can plan your days on your own terms, and finally enjoy all the things you haven’t had time for previously. There’s just one thing that many […]
Every so often, we have a patient come to our clinic with a severe ingrown toenail that had started weeks ago – or sometimes even months ago. The reason for waiting so long in pain? They were waiting for it to grow out. Truthfully, the idea that an ingrown toenail will just ‘grow out’ if […]
As parents, we’re often concerned about many aspects of our children’s wellbeing and development – and their feet are no exception. When kids have flat feet, especially when arches haven’t formed by the time a child starts school, we see many parents concerned about: If flat feet are normal at school age? Will they develop […]
Recently over our lockdown period, as we were unable to see patients under our higher alert levels, the questions around ingrown toenails came rolling in. A lot of the queries came after people had tried fixing their ingrown toenail at home. Some felt their pain had become worse, for some it stayed the same – […]
There’s no feeling quite like the sudden, painful and involuntary tightening in your feet and legs that we know as a cramp. During a foot or leg cramp, the affected muscle forcefully contracts, and you may notice your toes curling, your foot pointing down, or your muscle bulging in response. Cramps can last from a […]
We often have parents of 8 to 16-year-olds bring their kids in for the second time for the same problem: an ingrown toenail on their big toe that’s causing them (both mum and child), much pain and frustration. And they usually have the same questions: Why has the ingrown nail come back? How can we […]
We all know the feeling: we get excited about a new activity or sport, we head into it feeling confident and strong – and then we feel incredibly disappointed when an old pain, ache or injury flares back up – and sometimes feels worse than ever before. This is where prehab comes in – the […]
Does your baby have a red, swollen toe by the side of their toenail? Could it be an ingrown toenail – and do babies even get ingrown toenails? Yes, they do – and yes, swelling redness and tenderness by the side of the toenail may be an indicator of ingrown toenails in babies. Here’s an […]
The heels and our back seem miles apart, so could there be a relationship between the two? According to studies, there is, with up to 75% of people with ongoing heel pain being shown to have unmanaged low back pain or low back dysfunction. As podiatrists, this tells us that if our heel pain isn’t […]
We had a patient come in to see us recently with the tip of her second toe being red, feeling tender and looking a little swollen. She had experienced ingrown toenails previously, and said it felt a little bit like that. Except this time, she had cut her toenails short a week or so prior […]
With a great deal of uncertainty about where we can and can’t travel this winter, there’s one place that many families are excited about heading to – their snow trip! While there’s a lot of information out there on how to best prepare your body for the ski season to help minimise your risk of […]
Excruciating pain in one of your toes? Wondering whether you’ve broken it – and if you have – whether you should go to the hospital or a doctor or a podiatrist and what they’ll do? Broken toes are more common than many people realise – and unfortunately, so is suspecting a broken toe, not doing […]
A number of our patients with ingrown toenails find that their toenails have been thickening with age. For some, this thickness means that the nail is pressing against the top of their shoe, which is pushing the nail into the skin. For others, it’s very uncomfortable and they find their nails difficult to trim – […]
If you’ve been waking up with sore feet, heels or arches in the morning, this is for you. There’s a very specific kind of heel pain with the following three symptoms that you may relate to: Pain at the bottom of the heel that radiates into the arch Pain when standing up first thing in […]
Looking for a unique Mother’s Day gift in Auckland that your mum will truly appreciate? Our medical pedicures take care of mums feet – from her toenails to her corns and calluses, while giving her the assurance that her feet are being cared for by registered health professionals, safely and under strict hygiene and sterilisation […]
So you currently have – or have recently had – an ingrown toenail. And now you’ve developed some foot or leg pain. What’s going on and could they be linked? How Ingrown Toenails Affect Your Feet First thing’s first: ingrown toenails typically do not cause foot pain. Their pain is usually limited to the toe […]
While the most common descriptors of ingrown toenails from our patients include painful, frustrating, uncomfortable, annoying, excruciating, can’t-wear-shoes-anymore and can’t-sleep-at-night, we recently had a patient call in to book an appointment because he’d had an ingrown toenail for a couple of weeks now, and alongside some pain and discomfort, it was feeling quite numb. Meeting […]
We ask a lot of our bodies when we run. The force through our joints and our legs easily exceeds three times our body weight – so it’s not all too surprising that a large portion of our patients are either regular runners, or developed their symptoms when wanting to get into running. Today, we’re […]
A few times every year, we see patients who were under the impression that they could fix their ingrown toenail by doing regular Epsom salt baths. They will have usually tried 3-4 baths over a couple of weeks before they book in to see us because their ingrown toenail hasn’t gone away. This comes as […]
So you’ve developed a hammertoe – or maybe you’ve noticed that your child’s toes are starting to curl. So what can you do about it? Should you do anything about it? What if there’s no pain – is it fine to leave them? Today, Auckland’s premier podiatry team, Perform Podiatry, talks about the causes and […]
Ingrown toenails are our speciality. From one-off treatments to nail surgeries – and even removing the toenail entirely. We love helping patients finally get long-term relief from this painful and frustrating problem. But – are ingrown toenails all we do? It’s a great question, so today we thought we’d fill you in on all the […]
A one-off pain at the back of your heel at your Achilles tendon that starts but then shortly subsides for good is one thing. Ongoing Achilles pains and problems that keep reappearing – or even worse, never truly go away – takes the problem to a whole new level of discomfort, frustration and pain. Ongoing […]
Partial nail avulsions are our most popular and effective solution to ingrown toenails – permanently. If you’re thinking about having this procedure and have heard that it involves removing a small part of the problematic edge of your toenail, you may wonder what your nail may end up looking like after it has healed. The […]
Growing pains are one of the most common pains that we see and treat in kids. While some mistake growing pains for when active kids overuse the muscles of the feet and legs to a point where they are very tired, achy and sore, this isn’t the case. Others have been told that growing pains […]
An ingrown toenail develops when a small piece of the nail, or nail spicule, pierces the surrounding skin and begins to grow into the skin, instead of growing out independently alongside the skin. It doesn’t take a big piece of nail to cause you tremendous pain and irritation – think of it like a sharp […]
Recently, we shared all about the big range of problems that our podiatry team here at Perform Podiatry can help you with. From in-toeing to foot drop, to managing falls risk and instability on your feet, we’re trained to help you with it all – you can read all about it here. Today, we thought […]
The beauty of summer is that it allows us to get some relief from our ingrown toenails by wearing open-toed sandals and walk around with bare feet, which can also delay the onset of painful symptoms in the first place. In winter and the chilly NZ spring-time? Not so much. Our ingrown toenails can become […]
Having your nails and the skin on your feet taken care of feels great. What feels even better is walking away feeling confident that your foot care has performed safely, under strict hygiene and sterilisation protocols, and by registered podiatrists that have dedicated their careers to learning everything there is to know about your feet […]
When you have diabetes, your risk of foot problems increases significantly. This is because the effects of diabetes on your nerves and blood vessels damages two critical processes when it comes to the feet and legs: Your sensation – the ability to feel what’s happening to and around your feet Your circulation – the blood […]
Having a fall, whether it’s in our own home or when we’re out and about, can change our lives entirely. The injury we sustain from a fall can affect our ability to not only walk and move but stay independent – it might mean we have to stop living independently within our home and instead […]
So you – or your family member – has an ingrown toenail. And you’ve read conflicting information online that’s left you wondering whether you should be soaking your foot in salty water or having the whole nail removed completed. We get it – it can be confusing. So today, we thought we’d give you the […]
Foot drop is the term given when weakness in one or both feet makes you unable to point your toes up towards the sky, otherwise known as dorsiflexing the foot. When this happens, your foot remains in a dropped position when you walk, with your foot pointing downwards. This makes it difficult for your foot […]
We have the privilege of treating foot and leg injuries day in and day out. It’s very easy to pick up on patterns – like the shoes you wear into the clinic giving us the first hint of what your pain or injury may be, or your walking style giving away some biomechanical problems that […]
Partial Nail Avulsion A partial nail avulsion (PNA) provides a professional, safe and effective solution to the problem of frustrating and painful ingrown toenails. This is one of the most common procedures carried out in our clinic. The procedure removes the small part of the toenail edge that is growing downwards/inwards, piercing the skin and […]
Keeping your family on their feet and helping them to walk, run, play and exceed their goals is why we love getting up in the morning.
We're located inside the One Health medical centre at Building 122 Remuera Rd, Remuera, Auckland 1050, New Zealand
| MON - SAT | 8:30am – 6:00pm |
| SUN | Closed |
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