Warts Specialist

What are warts?

Warts are benign fleshy growths that commonly appear on the base of your foot or toes. When they’re on any part of the foot, they’re called plantar warts.

Warts develop because of a virus called human papillomavirus (HPV). It’s highly contagious and gets into your blood through small cuts or openings in the skin. 

Luckily, your warts will go away eventually whether or not you treat them. However, you run the risk of spreading them to other people or to other parts of your body while they’re active. 

If you have warts on the sole of your foot, they tend to be hard and flat against your skin due to the pressure of stepping on them. Warts in other areas tend to be raised and bumpy. 

Warts vary in color and can be gray or brown, and they often include some black dots which are actually small clotted blood vessels. 

What causes warts?

Warts spread from person to person through contact. However, you don’t have to touch someone directly to catch HPV and develop a wart. 

Usually, plantar warts come from walking barefoot through areas where other people have also walked barefoot, such as pools, public showers, and locker rooms. The HPV virus thrives primarily in moist areas like these.

You can also spread your wart to other areas of your body by touching, picking at, or scratching it. You can prevent warts and their spread by wearing sandals instead of going barefoot in public areas, changing your socks and shoes every day, and keeping your feet clean at all times. 

What are my treatment options for plantar warts?

Gentle Foot and Ankle Care specializes in diagnosing and treating plantar warts. While treating them is optional given that they usually go away on their own eventually, treatment might make them go away faster. Still, some warts are tough to treat and reoccur anyway. 

Treatments for warts include:

Salicylic acid

Salicylic acid is a prescription-strength topical product that removes your warts layer by layer. You apply the acid at home, but the team at Gentle Foot and Ankle Care might ask you to come in a few times as you treat your wart. 

Cryotherapy

Cryotherapy uses liquid nitrogen to freeze off your wart. The application happens safely in the office at Gentle Foot and Ankle Care. 

Minor surgery

In some cases, the team can remove a wart using an electric needle in a minor surgery called electrodesiccation and curettage. This surgery has a risk for scarring so it’s not usually the first wart treatment choice. 

Laser treatment

A pulsed-dye laser can cauterize the tiny blood vessels in a wart so it loses its blood supply and eventually falls off. 

Warts are contagious and can cause some discomfort when located on the bottom of your foot. To schedule an appointment for plantar warts, call Gentle Foot and Ankle Care or book your visit online today. 

The foot doctors at Gentle Foot Care offer ankle replacement surgery, bunion treatment, and overall foot and ankle care. Call us to book your appointment today.