Analysis of Gender Usage Characteristics of Korean Medical Nail Care

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Purpose: This study aims to analyze the treatment usage characteristics of consumers in Korea who use medical nail care, which is a noninvasive combined treatment. Methods: The study examined three symptoms, namely, onychomycosis, ingrown toenails, and pincer toenails in a group of 500 people in December 2022. A survey was conducted, and data were analyzed by gender. Results: In terms of the type of problem toenails, onychomycosis was higher in men, and women displayed high rates of pincer toenail. Current toenail conditions exhibited slightly negative response rates for men and women. Moreover, men tend to prefer hospitals, and women perform self-care to manage these issues. The usage rate of general nail salons was higher for women than that for men. The reasons for opting to use medical nail care demonstrated high response rates of improvement in problem for men and women. For procedures, the usage rate of laser or medication for treating onychomycosis was higher for men, whereas that of the resin gel procedure for ingrown and pincer toenail was higher for women. The monthly expenditure cost was less than 100,000 won for men and women, and the period of effect did not significantly differ across two and three months for both groups. Conclusion: The findings of this study have implications for understanding consumers with problematic toenails and rethinking the medical nail care system.