jay_bert

Hi all! I have a question in regards to ridges on nails. Marti, I've read some of your posting in this regards, but I think my mom's situation is different. I understand all of us naturally have ridges and grooves in our nails due to normal growth--but my mother looks like she's growing mountains on her thumbs. I am totally serious. For the longest time, she has had extremely brittle nails that would split and crack at the slightest bump. She's always kept them trimmed very short to try and minimize snagging her clothes because of how badly split her nails are. For years, she has tried many different therapies (calcium vitamins, filing the top of the nail, cuticle oil, etc). Then about a year ago she developed a very noticible ridge growing from the nail bed to just past the pink moon shaped thingy (I can't remember what you guys call it . . . ). Last month, on both of her thumbnails those ridges have become almost like mountains, they're so tall. It's the wierdest thing I've ever seen--it's like taking a piece of paper, laying it on a flat surface and sliding the ends together until the middle forms a tall peak. I've been politely after her to try and figure this out, because I'm getting worried now that her nail looks like something out of a sci-fi movie. Has any of you encountered this at all? Any info or suggestions would be appreciated.

Side notes: she has talked to her PCP about it and he suggested a vitamin deficincy (calcium-which she has been taking with no results), has fibromyalgia, IBS and has had a appendectimy--hope this helps!