Simple and permanent treatments for plantar warts

Plantar warts are a common skin condition. Here's what you need to know about plantar warts .

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Acne is a common problem on the body, not just the face but it can appear anywhere.

Warts usually appear on the heels or tops of the feet and are caused by the human papillomavirus. Because plantar warts are on the soles of the feet, these are the areas that are most exposed to pressure, so they tend to grow inward, with the hardened skin covering the wart.

Plantar warts can cause significant pain and discomfort but are not a serious health risk. Usually, basic hygiene treatments combined with specialist medication are enough to relieve the problem, but for severe cases you will need to consult a doctor.

So how to get rid of warts? What causes warts and how to prevent them. Let's find out together!

Table of Contents

• Method 1: Treating plantar warts at home
  • 1. Recognize the limitations of raw materials at home
  • 2. Preparation before treating plantar warts
• 3. Use salicylic acid
  • 4. Use tape
  • 5. Research cryogenic compounds at home
  • 6. Determine whether to see a doctor
• Method 2: Have your doctor treat plantar warts
  • 1. Talk to your doctor about a stronger acid peel.
  • 2. Talk to your doctor about cryotherapy
  • 3. Talk to your doctor about laser treatment
  • 4. Talk to your doctor about immunotherapy
  • 5. If your warts are still not treated, you can talk to your doctor about surgical options.
• Method 3. Identify and Prevent Plantar Warts
  • 1. Determine the risk of getting plantar warts
  • 2. Observe the suspected location of the plantar wart.
  • 3. Assess secondary symptoms
  • 4. Be careful of spreading warts
  • 5. Prevent new warts
  • 6. Avoid spreading warts to others

Method 1: Treating plantar warts at home

1. Recognize the limitations of raw materials at home

Although home treatment of plantar warts is effective, it will take longer. If you want to get rid of the wart quickly, it is best to see a doctor. However, permanent removal of warts takes time, even with treatment by a doctor.

• Plantar warts usually go away on their own without leaving scars, but this can take several months. In addition, warts can be painful and make it difficult to move.

2. Preparation before treating plantar warts

First, soften the top of the wart by soaking your foot in warm water for a few minutes. Then, use a pumice stone or nail file to scrape away the skin over the wart.

• Note: Do not use a pumice stone or nail file to rub warts on other parts of the body to avoid spreading the virus.
• Removing the top layer of dead skin will help the treatment penetrate deeper into the wart.

3. Use salicylic acid

There are many over-the-counter products available that are applied directly to the skin, such as Compound W , to treat plantar warts with salicylic acid. These products come in liquid, gel, or patch form. Be sure to follow the instructions on the package to successfully remove the wart.

• Salicylic acid treatment is painless but it takes a few weeks to see results.

4. Use tape

Cut the tape to the correct size and apply it to the wart for up to 6 days. On the 7th day, remove the tape and soak your feet in warm water for about 5 minutes to soften the dead skin on the wart. Then, use a pumice stone or nail file to smooth out the skin on the wart, replace the tape with a new one, and apply the tape for another 6 days.

• Do not use a pumice stone or nail file that has been used to file down warts for other purposes.
• Treatment may take several weeks to take effect.
• Although the mechanism of action is not yet known, many people report good results from this method.

5. Research cryogenic compounds at home

Freezing cuts off blood flow to the wart. There are several over-the-counter medications that can be used at home to freeze warts, such as Compound W Freeze Off and Dr. Scholl's Freeze Away . Be sure to read and follow the instructions on the product packaging.

• Freezing warts at home can be a little uncomfortable and painful. Your doctor may also use a local anesthetic to freeze the wart more deeply.

6. Determine whether to see a doctor

Although plantar warts can be treated at home, there are cases where medical attention is needed. Seek immediate medical attention if you experience any of the following complications:

• Warts do not go away after home treatment or go away but quickly return.
• Warts that grow larger or appear in clusters. This may be a mosaic wart ( small warts that grow in clusters on the soles of the feet or heels ).
• The wart begins to bleed or feel more painful after treatment.
• The wart becomes red and swollen or starts to drain pus. This is a sign of infection.
• If you have diabetes, peripheral vascular disease, or coronary artery disease, do not treat warts at home. Instead, see a podiatrist to monitor the peripheral blood supply to your feet and treat the warts. These conditions can increase the risk of infection or tissue death due to poor blood circulation.

Method 2: Have your doctor treat plantar warts

1. Talk to your doctor about a stronger acid peel.

Over-the-counter salicylic acid is a peel used to reduce the size of warts. However, if home treatment is not effective, your doctor may prescribe a stronger peel such as bichloracetic acid or trichloroacetic acid . You may need to have repeated treatments to get rid of the wart, and your doctor may recommend additional home use of salicylic acid.

2. Talk to your doctor about cryotherapy

Similar to a home cryotherapy, cryotherapy uses liquid nitrogen to freeze the wart tissue. After treatment, a blister forms, heals, and then falls off the skin, taking all or part of the wart with it.

• Cryotherapy can be painful and is usually not recommended for young children . Your doctor may use a local anesthetic, depending on the size of the wart.
• When treating with cryotherapy, you need to see your doctor several times to see results.

3. Talk to your doctor about laser treatment

There are two laser procedures for removing warts: the first involves cutting the wart from the skin, and the second involves cauterizing the blood vessels that supply blood to the wart and destroying it. Laser surgery can be painful and requires a long recovery period. Patients may be given local anesthesia and discharged from the hospital immediately after surgery.

4. Talk to your doctor about immunotherapy

In this immunotherapy, the doctor injects an antigen into the wart. In other words, the doctor injects a toxin into the wart to stimulate the immune system to fight the virus. This method is used for warts that are difficult to cure or resistant to other treatments.

5. If your warts are still not treated, you can talk to your doctor about surgical options.

A podiatrist may use a technique called excision, which involves using an electric needle to destroy the tissue around the wart and remove the wart completely. This procedure can be painful and leave scar tissue, but it is effective and produces long-lasting results.

• ABSOLUTELY DO NOT cut warts at home . Because cutting warts at home can cause bleeding and infection if not using the right tools and in a sterile environment.

Method 3. Identify and Prevent Plantar Warts

1. Determine the risk of getting plantar warts

Warts are caused by exposure to the Human Papillomavirus ( HPV ). There are more than 120 different strains of HPV, but only 5-6 cause plantar warts. The virus enters through contact with infected skin scales.

• Athletes who bathe in public areas are at increased risk of developing plantar warts because of the large number of people and often unprotected feet. For example, swimmers ( both indoor and outdoor in the summer ) are at increased risk of developing plantar warts if they use public showers and walk around the pool. The risk is also high in people who share gym locker rooms, showers, and hot tub areas where many people walk around barefoot.
• Cracked or peeling skin on the feet can allow the virus to enter the body. Wet or sweaty feet throughout the day are also at increased risk due to excessive exposure to moisture, increasing the risk of the virus entering the body.
• People who have had plantar warts are at high risk of getting them again. Squeezing/picking at warts can easily spread the virus to other parts of the body.
• People with weakened immune systems due to illnesses such as infectious mononucleosis, Epstein-Barr virus infection, cancer, cancer treatment, people being treated for psoriatic arthritis, or having HIV/AIDS.

2. Observe the suspected location of the plantar wart.

They may be small, hard, flat areas of skin with rough edges. Although they resemble calluses, plantar warts are caused by bacterial infections. There are two types of plantar warts: single warts or warts that grow in clusters ( mosaic warts ).

• A single wart will increase in size and multiply into multiple single warts that radiate out from the original wart.
• Mosaic warts are clusters of warts that grow together ( without skin in between ), not spreading out but growing close together, like large warts. Mosaic warts are more difficult to treat than single warts.

3. Assess secondary symptoms

Are plantar warts painful? Although they resemble calluses on the soles of your feet, plantar warts are often painful when standing and when rubbed. Look for the black dots inside the thickened skin, which are called “ wart seeds ,” but are actually tiny blood vessels trapped in the wart.

4. Be careful of spreading warts

Warts can be passed from person to person and can spread to your own body. Three small plantar warts can quickly grow into 10 and can be very difficult to treat. As with most diseases, warts are more effectively removed when detected and treated early.

5. Prevent new warts

After treatment, you are at higher risk of getting HPV, which can lead to new warts. To prevent this, you should:

• Wear sandals or waterproof shoes in public places, showers, locker rooms, saunas, swimming pools or public hot tubs.
• Always keep feet clean and dry.
• Change socks daily and use foot powder if your feet sweat a lot.
• Apply coconut oil to your feet at night before bed to prevent cracked and peeling skin. Remember to wear socks after applying coconut oil to your feet.

6. Avoid spreading warts to others

• Do not scratch or squeeze warts to avoid spreading them to other people or other areas of the body.
• Do not touch other people's warts and do not share socks/shoes.
• Wear flip-flops or waterproof shoes in the bathroom to avoid spreading warts to other family members.
• Do not leave clothes, towels and socks on the floors of public changing rooms and pool areas.

See more: How to remove acne effectively in just 1 day

Frequently Asked Questions About Plantar Warts

What is the difference between plantar warts and calluses?

Plantar warts are rough growths that form on the soles of your feet. HPV causes plantar warts. They can be contagious.

Calluses are small, round, hard, thick deposits of skin. They can appear on your feet or on your hands and fingers. Calluses are caused by friction, rubbing, irritation, or constant pressure on the skin. They are not contagious.

What is the difference between common warts and plantar warts?

Common warts (palmar warts) form on your hands and fingers. They are the most common type of wart.

Plantar warts appear on the soles of your feet.

Are plantar warts an STD?

No, plantar warts are not a sexually transmitted infection (STI or STD). HPV causes warts, but there are more than 100 types of HPV.

HPV types 1, 2, 3, 4, 27, and 57 cause plantar warts. Skin-to-skin sexual contact does not spread these types of HPV, so they are not STDs.

HPV types 6 and 11 cause most cases of genital warts. These types of HPV are spread through skin-to-skin sexual contact, so they are STDs.

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