The ugly thick, yellow appearance of fungal toenails is actually related to the separation of the keratin into distinct layers. The toe fungus grows within the toenail and separates the toenail plate, causing the toenail to become friable and crumble. When the toenail keratin separates, light refracts unevenly through the toenail. The result is that the toenail appears yellow, white of otherwise discolored.
The actual appearance of the fungal toenail will not change during the laser procedure. The laser will kill toenail fungus on contact during the laser treatment. But you will have to wait for the dead fungus and newly treated toenail to grow out.
This is when the clear, healthy-appearing toenail will start to change. It takes about 8 months to one year for a new toenail to grow all the way out. So if your toenail is 50% yellow, it will likely take about 4-6months for you to regrow the toenail.
As the the toenail grows out, you of course will be trimming the funky, crusty, discolored toenail. As you trim the toenail, you will slowly see the clear healthy nail returning.
If you have ugly fungal toenails and would like to have clear healthy toenails again, you can arrange to have the laser toenail procedure in the privacy of your own home or office. That's right...we do podiatry house calls in San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley and Houston. Dr. Christopher Segler, D.P.M. is Board Certified, American Board of Podiatric Medicine. If you would like to ask a question about laser toenail fungus removal, or schedule your laser toenail house call, you can reach him directly at 415-308-0833.