Pterygium

[Super nails]

Help solve a debate.
I understand pteriguim to be the name for the non living tissue that we remove with a cuticle knife and comes from under the cuticle onto the nail plate.
My collegue tells me its a non treatable condition and covers the whole nail plate and that I am using the wrong terminology.

I looked it up and found pterigium ungium which says the proximal nail fold and cuticle are drawn over the nail bed and fuse.
Could it be that there are 2 types of pterigium
pterigium ungium and pterigium simple??????
Any imput would be helpful.

Sophie

 

[ValencianNails]

I understand pteriguim to be the name for the non living tissue that we remove with a cuticle knife and comes from under the cuticle onto the nail plate.

Cuticle (non living tissue) is what we remove from the nail plate during prep, it attaches to the nail from the eponychium (sometimes wrongly called the cuticle).

Pterygium is NOT cuticle, it's living tissue and there is only one kind (as far as I'm aware).

Looking in Doug Schoon's book, he describes it as: An abnormal winglike growth of skin.

hth's

http://www.salongeek.com/nail-geek/95751-cuticle-eponychium.html#post942018

 

[Mrs.Clooney]

When I was at college I only knew what pterygium really was (as Sandi describes), because of Salon Geek. Unfortunately it is not accurately described in colleges and is also referred to as cuticle.

As far as I am aware it can be treated but with great difficulty.

 

[clara doon]

This is a subject that comes up from time to time as some training providers do/did refer to the cuticle as pterygium .. and isn't helped by the fact many product catalogues sell 'pterygium knifes'

sandi summed it up 100%

but just to add yes there are 2 types of pterygium, inverse (this is seen on the underneath of the free edge, and as the nail plate grows the LIVING tissue gets dragged along, this type of nail can be enhanced but take great care when taking down the length of the natural nail)

and there is dorsal pterygium (think of the dorsal fin on a dolphin .. on top !!) this condtion is not safe to enhance, as it is LIVING tissue it can't be removed safely,so when working with enhancements products you wouldn't be able to preform proper prep and if you did atempt to enhance you'd be working on living tissue which would an overexposure issue, this condtion is most likely caused by injury (including burns) its a abnormal adhesion of normal skin to the nail plate, so it looks like the skin has streched right over the nail plate.

hth xx

 

[Salsaqueen]

Help solve a debate.
I understand pteriguim to be the name for the non living tissue that we remove with a cuticle knife and comes from under the cuticle onto the nail plate.
My collegue tells me its a non treatable condition and covers the whole nail plate and that I am using the wrong terminology.

I looked it up and found pterigium ungium which says the proximal nail fold and cuticle are drawn over the nail bed and fuse.
Could it be that there are 2 types of pterigium
pterigium ungium and pterigium simple??????
Any imput would be helpful.

Sophie

I was told that Pterigium was not that common nowadays and used to be very common back in the 60's as people used to layer and layer their nail polish without removing it each time and of course what the polish was made from at the time, which encouraged the growth of the cuticle which then become thick and grew over the nail. We were taught to remember it by saying Terry has big thick overgrown cuticles, though I have seen pics of it and it looks like flesh growing over the nails as apposed to cuticle growing over the nail. I'll see what people tell you and learn from it.

 

[geeg]

I was told that Pterigium was not that common nowadays and used to be very common back in the 60's as people used to layer and layer their nail polish without removing it each time and of course what the polish was made from at the time, which encouraged the growth of the cuticle which then become thick and grew over the nail. We were taught to remember it by saying Terry has big thick overgrown cuticles, though I have seen pics of it and it looks like flesh growing over the nails as apposed to cuticle growing over the nail. I'll see what people tell you and learn from it.

:green: The polish thing is a complete MYTH I'm afraid and dorsal pterigium is not related to polish wear, either now or then.

Cuticle does not GROW either .. how can it if it is dead skin cells?

Cuticle accumulates .. it is accumulated, exfoliated, dead skin cells from the living nail folds, that get trapped under the eponychium and build up there where they attach to the top of the nail plate and get carried along with the growth of the nail plate.

Most cuticle is rubbed off the surface of the plate with everyday work and wear and tear but of course is doesn't get rubbed off so easily around the nail folds and so builds up in these areas.

What is confusing is that different schools are still calling cuticle different things.

Cuticle is not pterigium.
Cuticle is not True cuticle (there is no such thing).
Cuticle is not the eponychium.

Cuticle is cuticle period. End of story.

 

[redsadie]

Hiya, I just found this from 'www.hooked-on-nails.com'

"Pterygium is the inward advance of skin over the nail plate, usually the result of trauma to the matrix due to a surgical procedure or by a deep cut to the nail plate. Pterygium results in the loss of the nail plate due to the development of scar tissue. Cortisone is used to prevent the advancement of scar tissue. Never attempt to remove pterygium -instead, consult a physician for advice and treatment."

"NOTE: The 'true cuticle' is often referred to as Pterygium. If you have pterygium, it can only be treated by a physician and should never be removed by a nail technician."

 

[geeg]

This is a great picture and I have had several clients over the years who had this condition on one of their nails. It actually divides the nail plate in two and is a very tender area which should not be touched.

Pterygium is a broad general term for an over production of skin cells .. technically speaking, psoriasis is also pterygium.

 

[redsadie]

I agree, it is a good picture, grim as it is though

Always good to learn

Sarah. xx