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| Fig. 68.8 Green nail with onycholysis secondary to Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection. (Courtesy of the Fitzsimons Army Medical Center teaching files.) |
The most common cause is
Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which can colonize nail plates that are abnormally lifted up. This bacterium produces a pyocyanin pigment that imparts the green discoloration. After the nail is cut away, local therapy with a topical antiseptic or antibiotics is all that is needed for a cure (Fig. 68-8).
