I’ve known people who’ve gotten permanent nail-bed bruising from hammers and from car doors slamming on them. So I’d say it takes a lot of force to cause it. I’ve also heard stories of it occurring due to human bites; I’m not sure how human jaws compare to hammers and doors, though.

It isn’t really permanent. It just lasts a very long time.

I’m not sure it’s a bruise. I think it may be blood trapped under the nail.

sometimes they turn blue and a month or so later, the nail can fall off.
I made a bet with one of my pals that her nail was going to regenerate. It was blue for over 2 months and did cause the nail to fall off.
Usually getting fingers in doors, hammer accidents, just like @macbean said.

This happened to a friend of mine about 6 weeks ago. Her nail is still purple. She went to the doctor and he suggested she load up on calcium for a while, that this will help the new growth of the nail. I doubt it is permanently bruised but it may take quite a while to heal.

I have an odd nail problem. The nail on my right index finger grows in kind of dirty white instead of pink, and then it delaminates – the outer layer just peels off like soggy onion skin, leaving a rough, ugly surface. It doesn’t hurt, but it looks terrible. Anyone know what this is and what to do about it?

Maybe it is a signal that you should stop giving some people the finger. (Fungal infection?)

Soft and peeling nails: http://www.articlesbase.com/cosmetics-articles/peeling-nails-heres-8-reasons-why-its-happening-562964.html

@dpworkin: funny… my grandmother has the same problem. She just usually keeps a Band-Aid over it.

Ooh – are we doing nasty nail confessions? I have a disgusting nail on my little toe on my left foot (the one I write my novels and memoirs with.)

@dpworkin It is obviously an outward representation of YOUR SOUL, meant to warn people away from you.~

1/10th of my soul.

A bruise is a pooling of blood. It should go away eventually. A black color that does not go away, could be alot of things. A splinter, a tumor, dirt, fungus….

@dpworkin the peeling could be caused by a fungus .. get some drops. Also do not let it be wet all the time… like by putting it in your mouth or picking your teeth.

Oh c’mon, @dpworkin – admit it. You sold that nail to the devil years ago.

The devil went down to Georgia, he was lookin’ for a nail to steal…

So that I would be so dextrous with my fingers?

You haven’t proven that yet.

can we slap a nice big ol’ black CENSORED bar over this thread now? ;)

Oh was this your thread? Sorry about that @poofandmook.

stop hijacking people’s threads with your filth, @janbb

@janbb: just didn’t want to violate my virgin eyes.

Now they’re not virgin anymore, can I violate them now?

@janbb: That sounds incredibly menacing, and slightly tantalizing ;)

Oh my, a bit further than I intended this to go. I’m just a baby.

rofl

It’s called a *sub-ungual hematoma”—a collection of blood in the nailbed just underneath the nail. It disappears as the nail grows out, which may take months. If there’s pressure is causing pain, the treatment is to decompress it as follows: (This is going to sound like some kind of medieval torture but it’s actually harmless and painless.)

Grasp a paper clip in a pliers or clamp & heat it in a flame until the tip is glowing cherry red. Then gently plunge it through the fingernail right over the hematoma. The hot metal will burn a hole right through the nail (which is dead tissue insensitive to pain) and will stop when it hits the nail bed. That’s it! It takes about 2 seconds and leaves a small hole in the nail, which will grow outward with the nail, eventually to be clipped off. Sometimes some blood squirts out when the hole is made.

Generally only hematomas in the proximal half of the nail bed (closer to the knuckle) need to be treated in this manner.

My Dad had his nail stained black by some chemicals he was using, and it took forever to grow out.