Cuticle and Eponychium

The cuticle is a part of the proximal nail fold. Specifically, it is the skin that touches the nail plate. There is more to the cuticle than what is visible. As you have learned, the skin curls underneath to form the proximal nail fold (see Figure 1.1). The skin underneath the fold is different than the visible top surface. The underside of the proximal nail fold constantly sheds a layer of colorless skin. This shed skin attaches to the topside of the emerging nail plate. It then “rides” on the nail plate and seems to grow from under the fold. This is the true cuticle. The visible skin fold that appears to end at the base of the nail plate is the eponychium. Sometimes, this tissue is incorrectly called the cuticle. During a manicure, the eponychium is gently pushed back to expose the true cuticle which should be carefully removed. You will see later that improperly performing this part of the manicure causes many problems for clients. It can lead to service breakdown of artificial nails and may seriously damage the nail unit.