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So in the middle of last month I accidentally jammed a running drill into my thumbnail. It hurt like a mother. It's left a bruise, which initially was touching the base of the nail. I noticed today that the bruise it has left has actually cleared the lighter portion of the nail near the base, and is much close to the middle, but it hasn't changed in appearance much. It appears to be advancing towards the end of my finger as the nail grows. It doesn't hurt even when pressed, so I'm not too concerned about, but thought that it was curious.

Is it normal for a bruise to grow out with the nail?

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Yes, this is normal behavior for a bruise underneath the nail. (Corroborating information, located near the bottom of the article.)

Most bruises under a nail are caused by a crush type injury. In severe cases, there may be enough blood to separate the nail from the nail bed, or it may need professional drainage and treatment (Such as suturing and/or removing the nail).

If it is a small spot, then as the nail grows, the hematoma will move with it as the blood is trapped between the bed and the nail. If you have a bruise appearing spot underneath the nail that is unrelated to any injury, or does not move outwards with the growth of the nail it is best to get it checked out, as those are warning signs of it being a tumor.

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Yep. It is actually. Look at this time lapse. https://media.giphy.com/media/l2JJLwLjtZVnhuKKA/giphy.gif

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    That's a great time-lapse but it doesn't actually answer the question of whether it's normal or not. It only demonstrates that someone else observed the same phenomenon, which could be abnormal. (It's not, but that's beside the point.) Find a reliable source that says it is normal and you've got a good answer. – Carey Gregory♦ Mar 14 '16 at 18:11

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