Veterans day has come and gone without much fanfare. I think is very easy for us to forget what our service men and women do for all of us, everyday, to ensure our freedoms. I had the great pleasure of taking care of a Vietnam veteran recently in the office. He had an ingrown toenail. For those of you who have not had one, believe me it is very painful. In fact, ingrown toenails are near and dear to my heart. If it had not been for the one I had when I was ten I don't know if I would be a podiatrist in Sarasota today. I was relaying this story to my new patient when he said he had a much better story about ingrown toenails. In fact, he said an ingrown toenail had saved his life. Well he certainly had my attention. As the story goes he was a member of a Ranger Team that was in a forward position. They had gone a few days without anything happening so my patient decided to go back to the base to get his first ever ingrown toenail taken care of. He was tired of walking around in heavy boots with a red, swollen, painful toenail. He was also worried about the pus that was draining out of the toe. He went back to the base for his needed care and while he was gone his entire team was ambushed. There were no survivors.
The next time you have a very painful, red, swollen, toenail I hope you get the proper medical attention you need. I also hope that you take a moment and thank every veteran you know for what they have done and continue to do so we can live with freedom.
Committed to your health,
Dr. Craig Conti
Sarasota Foot Care Center
http://www.sarasotafootcarecenter.com/
