'False nail glue rotted away my finger': Teenager's horror as index finger turns green and has to be amputated

A teenage girl who glued on false nails lost the top of her finger after it rotted away. 

Sarah Greenaway, 17, applied her own false nails at home with cosmetic DIY glue bought in Boots - but days later she was rushed to hospital with a serious infection.

Bar worker Miss Greenaway was in agony as the index finger on her right hand turned green and started dying.

Doctors had to cut off the top of the finger to save her hand - and cut the finger open from tip to palm to clean it out.

Miss Greenaway bought the £3.20 Broadway Jet Dry Nail Glue at a Boots store in Pontypool, South Wales.

She said: 'I bought the glue for a set of nails I had at home already. All I wanted was for my nails to look nice.

'But later the next day my finger was really hurting, so I took the nails off.

'My nail had turned a greeny-black colour underneath.

'I went to A&E and they gave me antibiotics. But when they didn't work I was rushed in for surgery.

'It was very frightening - I was crying in pain, it was so scary.'

Miss Greenaway had an hour-long operation and was kept in hospital for observation.

She said: 'The pain was still so bad and I was put on a drip for antibiotics.

'Doctors didn't know then if they'd saved my finger. They said it might still have to be amputated.'

While she was in recovery, Miss Greenaway contracted the serious bacterial infection MRSA and had to spend a further two nights in an isolated cubicle at Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport.

The teenager, of Pontypool, is now having physiotherapy sessions to help with getting the use of her finger back.

However, a skin and beauty therapist told MailOnline that it is most likely that the infection was not caused by the glue, but that it was caused by poor nail preparation before the glue was applied.

Louise Thomas-Minns, who owns U And Your Skin, said: 'It's likely to be to do with the application process and the care of the nail. 

'I always get very worried about these at home treatments. It's really unfortunate, and I have massive sympathy for that, but it is probably down to her ability in applying it. 

'If there is water under the nail that could give rise to an infection. As with many things, its usually consumer error and not being equipped with the right knowledge.

'If the glue hasn't bonded properly, or the nail is wet or dirty before the glue is applied, it allows infection to breed.'

She added that people should always ensure their nails are clean and free of dirt and oil before false nails are applied.