What may increase your risk for problems from your nail symptoms?

Many conditions, lifestyle choices, medications, and diseases interfere with your ability to heal or fight infection. You may be at risk for a more serious problem from your symptoms if you have any of the following. Be sure to tell your health professional.

Conditions

• A problem or condition present since birth (congenital defect)
• Previous nail injury
• Previous surgery to nail area
• Previous surgery to remove the spleen

Lifestyle choices

• Alcohol abuse or withdrawal
• Drug abuse or withdrawal
• Smoking or other tobacco use

Medications

• Blood-thinning medications, such as warfarin, heparin, and aspirin
• Corticosteroids, such as prednisone
• Medications to prevent organ transplant rejection
• Medications used to treat cancer (chemotherapy)
• Radiation therapy

Diseases

• Anemia
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• Gout
• Hemophilia
• Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection
• Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP)
• Infectious arthritis
• Infectious bursitis
• Inherited bone disease
• Kidney disease
• Liver disease
• Lupus
• Malnutrition or an eating disorder such as anorexia nervosa or bulimia
• Multiple sclerosis
• Osteoarthritis
• Osteomyelitis
• Osteoporosis
• Peripheral arterial disease
• Psoriasis
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Sickle cell disease