This Is How To Get Rid Of Foot Warts Effectively!

Last Updated on January 22, 2021

The word warts give rise to a very specific childhood imaginary, reminding you of flying witches and mean old ladies with a visible mustache – the main female villains of some of your favorite stories. Maybe that is where the aversion to warts that most people have comes from, even though they are mostly a minor inconvenience. After all, nobody wants to look like a grumpy old witch.
Foot warts (or plantar warts, as they are more frequently called) have a pretty self-explanatory name: they are a common form wart that affects the bottom surface of the feet. Unlike other types of warts, sometimes it might be hard to get rid of plantar warts since over-the-counter medication and home remedies are not always effective. That is why in those cases, patients do need to seek a doctor in order to get proper treatment and overcome the issue.
Here’s everything you should know!

Just like any other type of warts, plantar warts are also caused by a virus –the human papillomavirus (HPV types 1, 2, 4, 57, 60, 63, 65, or 66. In case you don’t know, there are over 100 different types of HPV viruses). It enters the human system through small cuts or other kinds of foot lesions, even if they are very superficial. So yes, that means that plantar warts are contagious. However, the virus that causes this medical issue is not easily transmitted by direct contact from person to person. Instead, it can be often present in warm and moist environments such as locker rooms and public swimming pools. That is why you should always wear flip flops on communal showers.
There are several factors that make children and teenagers more vulnerable to develop plantar warts. For starters, they use communal showers much more frequently than the average adult because they play sports at school and engage in group activities more often. On the other hand, the majority of adults develop immunity to this virus throughout their lives.
People with a weak immune system such as HIV patients and those who are taking immunosuppressive medications are also at greater risk of being infected by the HPV virus.

– Pain when walking or standing;
– Callus (hard and thickened skin) at the spot where a wart has grown inward into the skin;
– A small rough lesion on the bottom surface of your foot with “fingerprints” (striae) around it – sometimes black dots may occur due to clotted blood vessels;
If you are not sure whether you have a case of a plantar wart on your foot or not, just look up some plantar wart images online and compare your situation with those. For the most part, plantar warts are not a dangerous medical condition and they should eventually disappear without any treatment whatsoever – if you choose to ignore it, be patient because it might take a year or two before they go away. But there are (many) exceptions that indeed require medical treatment.

• Duct tape:
Some people claim that duct tape can be used to remove a plantar wart. How does it work? Well, simply cover the wart with silver duct tape and change it every few days. It is important that between applications you soak the wart and remove the dead tissue around it.
Although this technique is far from being scientifically valid, it doesn’t hurt to try. It might even work, who knows. There is always a certain degree of wisdom in home remedies.
• Salicylic acid:
Salicylic acid is the most used plantar wart removal product. It is available as an over-the-counter medication in the form of a patch or liquid. If you choose the patch you will have to change them every 24 to 48 hours. The liquid form should be used daily. Carefully read the instructions or ask the pharmacist to describe the application procedure.

It might take some weeks or even months before you can notice any improvements in your foot condition.
• Cryotherapy:
Usually, cryotherapy treatment requires medical intervention but there are a couple of over-the-counter medications that can be used to freeze plantar warts. Apply one single drop of the product with an applicator stick two times a day for a period of two weeks. If it doesn’t work, do it again for another two weeks. Just make sure you don’t repeat the process for more than four times.
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If these over-the-counter medications and home remedies don’t improve your condition, you should schedule an appointment with your primary care doctor. He will be able to properly diagnose your issue and refer you to a specialist – that can be either a dermatologist or a podiatrist, depending on your specific case.
The specialist will then likely recommend one of the following treatments:
• Prescription salicylic acid:
Your doctor can prescribe much stronger salicylic acid medications than the ones you can buy at the pharmacy without a prescription. You will need to visit your doctor regularly so he can keep track of the recovery process. Other acids such as trichloroacetic acid can also be used during the treatment.
• Cryotherapy:
Your doctor may use a spray or a cotton swab to apply liquid nitrogen directly to the wart. This is a painful treatment and therefore requires the application of a mild anesthetic on your foot to numb the region.
The liquid nitrogen will cause a blister to form around the wart and slough off the dead skin cells while simultaneously stimulating your immune system to combat the virus.

• Surgical procedures:
Plantar wart removal surgery can be performed in three different ways depending on the stage of your plantar warts: laser surgery, electrodesiccation, and cauterization.
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Lastly, remember that there is only one great tip that can be given to prevent plantar warts, and you probably have already heard it a thousand times: keep your feet always covered in shared community spaces!