The War Against Toenail Fungus (Paperback)

~ Dwight Thomas (Author) "You might think that since we were able to put a man on the moon, we would have learned how to cure toenail fungus a..." (more)
Key Phrases: Red Fungus, United States Army, Air Force (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

This title is a humorous memoir by an unbiased medical writer. The author evaluates the newest FDA-approved pharmaceuticals for fungal nail infections, including LAMISIL TABLETS and PENLAC NAIL LACQUER (trademarks). While emphasizing the importance of these drugs, he explains why treatment failure is so frequent with the standard regimens, and he suggests ways in which these products might be used more effectively.

Product Details

• Paperback: 221 pages
• Publisher: Monterey Square Press (September 2003)
• ISBN-10: 097438920X
• ISBN-13: 978-0974389202
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #830,918 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A new strategy to beat toenail fungus. , September 2, 2004

By	Gaetan Lion - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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This is a very interesting and easy to read short book. Most likely, if you are reading this review you have experienced this incredibly stubborn ailment (toenail fungus), which affects millions of aging baby boomers. The author explains in detail what this ailment is; and how Penlac (topical) and Lamisil (oral) prescriptions work. And, most importantly he describes a unique strategy on how to better utilize these weapons against toenail fungus.

His rather brilliant strategy is something that no podiatrist knows about. He noticed based on his firsthand experience that Penlac works very well on the tip of the toenail, but not the bed and matrix of the toe. Meanwhile, Lamisil's performance is exactly the reverse. He also noted that the recommended dosage for Penlac is overkill. You don't need to lacquer your toes twice a day. You can get just as good results by doing it just a few times a week. Similarly, he thinks the Lamisil standard length of dosage (3 months) is way too short. It should be longer. The only reason the standard prescription is so short is to reduce the liability risk associated with the very low risk that Lamisil may cause liver malfunction. For healthy people, this drug is actually very safe.

So, by using a lower frequency of Penlac applications combined with an extended period of Lamisil, he completely cured his toes from toenail fungus. Meanwhile, when he tried Lamisil and Penlac on a stand-alone basis; they both failed.

If you are a toenail fungus sufferer, you owe it to yourself to read this book. You will find so much unique well-explained information. His strategy will give you a new cure that has a much higher percentage success than using Lamisil alone. He uncovered studies in France and Germany that corroborated most of his findings.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An acquired taste, August 7, 2005

By	William Sherrett (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is interesting if you are a sufferer of the malady in question. The science in the area of fungal skin infections has always been lacking, given the problems inherent in diagnosis and evaluation of treatments. Purveyors of the newer generation of anti-fungals (since the 80's) have been less than diligent in investigating the most efficient treatment regimens.

Mr. Thomas writes an account of his adventures in the world of dermatology, explaining the terms and giving the benefits of his skills as a science writer, as he spends more than $10,000 to rid himself of this condition. Cut to the chase: it takes a combination of systemic (Lamisil tablets) and topical (Penlac) treatments to prevail, and more than a year. People like Mr. Thomas and myself who have dug into the research literature will usually know more than the dermatologist.

Don't read it as an example of English composition, but it will cast some insight into the problems of dealing with the extreme free-market brand of medicine practised here. And keep in mind that the Lamisil patent expires in January of 2007.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A well-known but hazardous recipe, December 20, 2006

By	Application Software Developer (Brookline, MA, USA) - See all my reviews

As Barry Newman indicated in The Wall Street Journal of November 21, 2005, and as I happened to discover several years ago, Mr. Thomas's recipe for onchomycosis does generally work, but it is not clear that Mr. Thomas understands why it works or what risks it entails.

For long-established cases, no topical treatments are effective, because they cannot reach spores in the nail bed. Systemic treatments have been available for decades, starting with griseofulvin in 1939, but all of them have the potential for major side-effects. Terbinafine, currently the most effective, can provoke liver disorders. Costs will also remain high until generics become available, probably starting in late 2007.

Systemic treatment is effective only when carried out for long enough that nearly all fungal spores inactivated by the treatment are expelled from the nail bed through growth, a period typically at least six to twelve months. Remaining spores will begin to grow again soon after treatment stops. Because longstanding onchomycosis tends to suppress immune response, after systemic treatment has been effective, topical treatment will be needed indefinitely to prevent reinfection.

A problem that people seeking treatment will quickly discover is the maximum recommended treatment period for terbinafine (Lamasil) and itraconazole (Sporonox) of three months. For many cases this is not long enough to eradicate spores from the nail bed. Three-month treatments will often prove to be only temporarily effective.