Nail Care and Services
Anatomy that gets tested
The nail plate rests on the nail bed; new cells form in the matrix, whose visible portion is the lunula. The cuticle (dead tissue on the plate) and the eponychium (living fold at the base) are different structures - you may gently push the cuticle but never cut living tissue, because that opens the door to infection. The hyponychium seals beneath the free edge; sidewalls and nail folds frame the nail. Fingernails replace in about four to six months, toenails in nine to twelve, and growth is faster in summer and on the dominant hand.
Services
Manicures and pedicures involve shaping, cuticle care, massage, and polish. Enhancements include tips and forms with acrylic (liquid monomer plus polymer powder), UV/LED gels, hard gels, dip systems, and wraps. Sanitation governs all of it: implements washed and immersed in an EPA-registered hospital disinfectant, files, buffers, and porous pedicure items discarded after one client, foot spas cleaned and drained per rule, hands washed before and after.
Disorders versus diseases
Onychorrhexis is split or brittle nails, leuconychia is white spotting, onycholysis is lifting of the plate, onychocryptosis is an ingrown nail - refer. Paronychia (inflamed fold) and onychomycosis (fungal infection) are diseases you do not treat. A green-black discoloration under an enhancement is usually Pseudomonas and means the product comes off.
Traps
Confusing cuticle with eponychium; calling greenies a fungus; treating cuticle nipping as routine; assuming MMA monomer is acceptable - the FDA has warned against it for cosmetic nail use, and many boards restrict it.
Worked example: a client arrives with a red, swollen, pus-filled nail fold. Do not service; refer to a physician.