Warts are the most common infection of the skin
caused by a virus. Plantar warts grow on the plantar, or bottom
surface of the foot. They tend to be found in areas of pressure such
as the heel and ball of the foot. Plantar warts often grow into the
deeper layers of skin because of the pressure they receive because
of their location.
Plantar wart - Usually found on pressure points on the feet, this
can be one of the most painful forms of warts. It is usually in the
form of a lump, with black spots in the center. Many people confuse
these with dead skin that may build up on the feet due to
ill-fitting shoes.
The goal of wart treatment is to destroy or remove the wart without
creating scar tissue, which can be more painful than the wart
itself. How a wart is treated depends on the type of wart, its
location, and its symptoms. Also important is your willingness to
follow a weeks- or months-long course of treatment.
Plantar warts usually go away on their own, but most people would
rather treat them than wait for them to disappear. Unless you have
an impaired immune system or diabetes or are pregnant, there's no
reason you can't treat warts with over-the-counter remedies. But you
may wish to consult your doctor for help. He or she may suggest a
combination of over-the-counter and office treatments for plantar
warts.
Although plantar warts may eventually disappear by themselves, you
should seek treatment if they are painful. Your physician will
carefully trim the wart and apply a chemically treated dressing. The
physician will also give you instructions for self-care. Salicylic
acid patches, applied on a daily basis, and good foot hygiene,
including regular use of a pumice stone, are often all that is
needed. However, it may take several weeks for the wart to disappear
completely.
Plantar warts usually go away on their own, but most people would
rather treat them than wait for them to disappear. Unless you have
an impaired immune system or diabetes or are pregnant, there's no
reason you can't treat warts with over-the-counter remedies. But you
may wish to consult your doctor for help. He or she may suggest a
combination of over-the-counter and office treatments. No wart
treatment works 100 percent of the time. In general, your doctor
will recommend the least painful -- and least destructive -- methods
first, especially for children.
No matter what treatment is used, plantar warts occasionally fail to
disappear. They may also return weeks or months after an apparent
cure. Do not become concerned if a plantar wart recurs. Make an
appointment and the treatment will be repeated, or a different
method will be used to destroy the plantar wart. Once a person is
infected, there is no evidence that any treatment eliminates HPV
infection or decreases infectivity, and warts may recur after
treatment because of activation of latent virus present in healthy
skin adjacent to the lesion. There is currently no vaccine for these
types of the virus. However, treatments are sometimes effective at
addressing symptoms and causing remission of the virus.
The treatment that will be effective in a particular case is highly
variable. The most comprehensive medical review found that no
treatment method was more than 73% effective and using a placebo had
a 27% average success rate.
