Bruised Toenail Coming Loose?
Bruised Toenail Falling Off: Will It Grow Back? Best Treatment!
A bruised toenail that starts to turn black or purple and eventually falls off is often a sign of trauma or pressure under the nail. Whether caused by stubbing your toe, wearing tight shoes, or running long distances, this condition — known as a subungual hematoma — can look alarming. While most cases heal on their own, there are times when professional treatment is necessary to prevent infection, pain, or permanent nail damage.
Let’s explore the causes, what to expect, and how to manage the recovery process.
Understanding the Bruised Toenail and Nail Loss Process
When trauma or repeated stress causes bleeding under the toenail, the trapped blood can discolor the nail, cause pain, and eventually separate the nail from the nail bed. This process can take days or even weeks, depending on the severity of the injury. As the damaged nail lifts, a new one may slowly grow underneath. It’s important to keep the area clean and dry, avoid further pressure, and watch for signs of infection such as redness, swelling, or pus. In severe or painful cases, podiatric care may be required to drain blood or remove the nail safely.
Toenail Coming Off? Discover How to Boost Your Nail's Recovery!
If you have a bruised toenail falling off? Will it grow back? While nothing is 100%, but find out how to MAXIMIZE your chances!
Toenail Pain (Toenail Fungus, Ingrown Toenails, Discolored Toenails)
Don’t Let a Damaged Toenail Get Worse — Get Expert Care Today!
If your toenail is bruised, painful, or starting to fall off, it’s important to monitor it closely and know when to get help. At Balance Foot and Ankle Specialist, our foot specialists are here to guide you through safe healing, pain relief, and nail regrowth. Book your consultation today — in person or virtual.
Call now or book an appointment online—your peace of mind starts here.
How to Prevent a Bruised Toenail From Falling Off Video
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Bruised Toenail Falling Off Causes:

Red or Black Toenail Picture & Photo Gallery:
Look:
- A red toenail generally means fresh blood or a fresh injury.
- This can be called a toenail hematoma or fresh blood from repetitive irritation.
- A black toenail is generally more dried blood that has crested underneath the toenail.
- Very infrequently, can a black toenail be something more dangerous like melanoma?
- It is also possible for your toenail to the infected with toenail fungus. This can also then result in rubbing and bleeding after the toenail fungus.
- If there is toenail fungus, this is usually more of a brown or yellow color.
- A toenail falling off is a widespread problem as well.
Please click on the photo gallery for descriptions & full-size photos!
Bruised Toenail Falling Off: Will It Grow Back Overview:
This home treatment guide will tell you how to get your toenail to grow back and how long it will take!
Will The Toenail Ever Grow Back?
- Yes!
- It will almost always grow back as long as the stem cells that grow the nail deep in the tissue were not ripped out!
- Long-term damage is doubtful as these growth cells are very well protected deep near the bone of the toes.
- But prepare yourself. This process could take a very long time for your toenails to start growing back to normal!
How Long Until The Toenail Grows Back?
- The toenail will grow back at approximately 1 millimeter per month.
- This means you will be waiting a long time!
- If your toenail is 10 millimeters long, then you could be waiting approximately 10 months.
- If just the tip of your toenail is damaged, then the wait will be much shorter in duration.
- For reference, a grain of rice is 6mm.

Bruised Toenail Falling Off Causes:
The three most common causes are, follow these causes to find out how to treat them:
1. Traumatic Toenail Injury

The most common cause of this type of injury is dropping something heavy onto your big toenail!
Symptoms:
- A massive amount of pain!
- Obvious causes such as blunt force trauma.
- Bleeding and swelling.
- Black or red toe within thirty minutes.
Follow our Complete Treatment Guide!

2. Constant Repetitive Friction and Rubbing
A new pair of shoes most likely cause this during heavy exercise. This is also very common in people just starting a new exercise class or training for a marathon.

Symptoms:
- Pain may be present or absent, so don’t be alarmed if it’s not there.
- The bruising may appear gradually.
Follow our Complete Treatment Guide!

3. Toenail Fungus Causing Nail Loosening
This can occur if you have thick yellow and crumbling toenails.
Toenail Fungus Home Treatment:
- These are our favorite products to treat toenail fungus at home.
- It is difficult to properly diagnose any health problem such as toenail fungus with 100% certainty. So see your podiatrist and make sure you are not missing anything!
- Also, many of these products are considered beauty products more so than health products. Just be aware that they are not always FDA evaluated or approved in any way.
How to Fix Toenail Fungus:
- There are many different types of toenail damage.
- In our experience, about easily 50% or more is related to toenail fungus.
- The key to toenail fungus is to trim it as much as possible and file that nail down vertically and length-wise.
- If you can do that, you have to make sure you can kill fungus the rest of the way with creams and topical medication.
- The best way to do that is to soak exfoliate the affected toenail skin. So, foot soaks can be a strong anti-fungus solution.
- At the same time, you have to apply anti-fungal medication such as these medications evaluated here or the toenail repair pens.










Recommended Foot Fungus Products:
- It is also vital to fix your foot fungus.
- Athlete’s feet can be beneficial to remove from the foot because if left unchecked, they can quickly spread back to the toenails even if they are fixed.
- Even if you cure your toenail fungus, keep your toenails trimmed in healthy: your foot fungus can spread back into toenails.
- So make sure you treat your foot fungus, as well as your toenail fungus.








Best Toenail Fungus Clippers & Files:
- You have to be careful using at home, and definitely be safe and don’t use these if you have dangerous health conditions.
- It is important to see a podiatrist for foot evaluation and care if you have continued health care issues or problems with your feet.
- These are some great value heavy-duty clippers and sets.
- The key is to cut straight across and file the nail down from the top to keep it from impinging in the corners.
- It is also important to make sure all dead, dry skin is removed surrounding the foot.
- This is where you should really see your podiatrist if you have any concerns or are worried about cutting or hurting yourself.
- This is something covered, so don’t take chances with your health!






Best Toenail Fungus Polish and Remover:
- There is some great toenail fungus polish options and polish removal options.
- There are no acetone-based toenail polish removers, they don’t dry as quickly, but they are less like a dehydrator toenail.
- This also applies to your fingernails and hands.
- The benefits of using these non-toxic toenail polishes are that they are filled with non-fungal options such as tea tree oil, preventing toenail fungus.
- These can also work well for the fingernails.
- So great combo is to use one of these healthier toenail paint options, as well as a non-acetone-based toenail polish remover.






Best Shoes For Toenail Injuries:
- The key to prevent toenail ripping and lifting is to have good supportive shoes.
- If you have a good supportive shoe that keeps pressure off your toes in your toenails, there will be no lifting and cracking to allow bacteria and fungus to get in.
- This almost seems counter-intuitive, but when people make a switch to perfect supportive shoes that fit properly, their toenail problems almost always get better over the next few months or a year.
- Your current nail is already likely destroyed, especially with joggers toe, but let the new nail growing healthy without new damage.
- Click the following link for our most recommended shoes. Try to focus on shoes with mesh and room around the big toe and also the smaller toes.
Best Antifungal Moisture Wicking Socks:
- These are some great options for moisture-wicking sucks.
- The more you can wick moisture from your foot, the less chance there is that toenail fungus, and athlete’s foot can survive.
- We tried to focus on budget value stocks that are not too expensive.
- Sure there are better stocks out there, but these are great socks for a great price for most people.
- If you have diabetes, focus on getting yourself some diabetic socks.
Best Woman’s Antifungal Socks:








Best Men’s Antifungal Socks:




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Toenail Pain (Toenail Fungus, Ingrown Toenails, Discolored Toenails)
Frequently Asked Questions About Bruised Toenails Falling Off
This is usually due to bleeding under the nail (subungual hematoma) caused by trauma or pressure.
It can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, depending on the extent of the damage.
In most cases, yes. Just keep it clean, dry, and protected to prevent infection.
No. Let it detach naturally unless instructed by a healthcare professional.
Sometimes. If the trauma is minimal and treated early, the nail may not fall off.
Use ice, elevate the foot, and take over-the-counter pain relief like ibuprofen.
If the pain is severe, the toenail is fully detached, or you notice signs of infection.
Yes, but it can take 6 months or longer for a full regrowth depending on your age and health.
It’s best to reduce pressure and switch to looser shoes to avoid further damage.
Wear properly fitting footwear, trim nails regularly, and avoid repetitive toe impact.