What does it mean if my nails have ridges?

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Ridge direction is the whole answer. Vertical ridges running from cuticle to tip are a normal aging change - MedlinePlus notes nails commonly develop these lines over time, like wrinkles for nails. If every nail has had fine vertical lines for years, that is you, not a disease. Dryness and frequent wet work make them more visible, and moisturizer plus gloves actually helps.

Horizontal dents are different. A groove running across the nail - Beau lines - means the nail factory paused during a period of high fever, major illness, surgery, or severe stress, and the groove grows out over months. You can roughly date the event: nails grow about three millimeters a month, so a dent near the cuticle is recent. Spoon-shaped nails that curve upward - koilonychia - are the classic sign of iron deficiency and deserve a blood test. Pitting, thickening, or crumbling points toward psoriasis or fungus.

One nail warning to know: a single dark streak down one nail, especially if widening or reaching the cuticle, should be looked at promptly - that pattern occasionally marks a nail-bed melanoma and is the one nail change not to watch for months.

Pymander is a free AI doctor, 24/7 by text. Describe the ridges - direction, one nail or all - and it can help you read them.

What does it mean if my nails have ridges?

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