Ever see a pinky toe with no nail and wonder why, in some individuals, there is no nail on their pinky toe?
Or sometimes there is, if you want to call it a true nail: a tiny slit of a nail – not big enough to put polish on without getting it on the surrounding skin.
“Nearly everyone has 10 toenails and 10 toes,” says Dr. Steven Musick, MD, a board certified dermatologist who runs Musick Dermatology, LLC, in Swansea, IL, which provides state-of-the-art medical and surgical care for all disorders of the skin, hair and nails.
“Some people are born without one or more nails and this persists throughout life.
“Sometimes, trauma to a toe can cause temporary or permanent nail loss.
“Rarely, skin cancer can destroy the nail matrix (the area that makes the nail).”
Signs of melanoma on a nail bed are classically a dark line running from the bottom to the top of the nail, that grows in thickness over time.
Often, this dark band is progressively thicker towards the bottom of the nail.
The darkness will eventually spill over into the surrounding skin if not treated. This is called the Hutchinson’s sign.
Also keep in mind that the pinky toe is a naturally small digit, which means there’s much less room for a nail to fully grow there anyways.
Steven Musick, MD
Since 2008 Musick Dermatology & Advanced Clinical Spa has been providing state-of-the-art medical and surgical care for all disorders of the skin, hair and nails.
Lorra Garrick has been covering medical, fitness and cybersecurity topics for many years, having written thousands of articles for print magazines and websites, including as a ghostwriter. She’s also a former ACE-certified personal trainer.
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