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What Does A White Coating On Thumbnail After Bypass Surgery Suggest?

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Posted on Tue, 2 Jun 2015
Question: I have had a while filmy coating on my left thumbnail for about 2 1/2-3 years. This coating can be easily scraped off but it returns. I thought I remember years ago, that this is related to a health issue. Now I hard guad-bypass surgery 2 years ago and after the surgery it appeared to go away, but about 6 months later, the filmy coating was more of a yellowish. That yellow coloring went away by itself and now it is white again. Some days this coating appears quite frequently and other days it is not there at all. Again it is only on the left thumbnail. Any Ideas?
XXXXXXX E. Firkowski
YYYY@YYYY
doctor
Answered by Dr. Kathy Robinson (2 hours later)
Brief Answer:
probably not related to general health issue

Detailed Answer:
Hello and thank you for your question.
It is true that there are some health issues that cause nail problems but in these cases usually all nails are affected. When only one nail is damaged it is usually due to a problem with the nail like a nail fungus or a problem with the nail bed like a trauma to the fingernail.
What you describe sounds like you may have a fungal infection in the nail. Your doctor or a dermatologist could send a sample of the nail to a lab for a fungal nail culture to determine if this is the case. If it is a fungal infection then your doctor could prescribe treatment for it to get rid of the problem.
If it is due to damage to the nail bed then it is probably something you will just have to live with.
I suggest that you see your doctor about getting a fungal culture done on the nail.
Regards,
Dr. Robinson
Note: Hope the answers resolves your concerns, however for further guidance of skin related queries consult our Dermatologist.Click here to book a consultation

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Answered by
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Dr. Kathy Robinson

General & Family Physician

Practicing since :1989

Answered : 3535 Questions

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What Does A White Coating On Thumbnail After Bypass Surgery Suggest?

Brief Answer: probably not related to general health issue Detailed Answer: Hello and thank you for your question. It is true that there are some health issues that cause nail problems but in these cases usually all nails are affected. When only one nail is damaged it is usually due to a problem with the nail like a nail fungus or a problem with the nail bed like a trauma to the fingernail. What you describe sounds like you may have a fungal infection in the nail. Your doctor or a dermatologist could send a sample of the nail to a lab for a fungal nail culture to determine if this is the case. If it is a fungal infection then your doctor could prescribe treatment for it to get rid of the problem. If it is due to damage to the nail bed then it is probably something you will just have to live with. I suggest that you see your doctor about getting a fungal culture done on the nail. Regards, Dr. Robinson