Causes
Plantar warts are small rough growths that occur in the skin. For our purposes we are going to focus on plantars warts. Plantar warts are caused by an infection with HPV in the outer layer of skin on the soles of the feet. The warts develop when the virus enters through tiny cuts, breaks or weak spots on the bottom of the foot. If left untreated, warts can last from a few months to 2 years in children, and several years in in adults. They can sometimes be mistaken as a simple callus.
HPV is very common, and more than 100 kinds of the virus exist. But only a few of them cause warts on the feet. Other types of HPV are more likely to cause warts on other areas of your skin or on mucous membranes. While not a serious health concern, warts can cause pain and discomfort during many activities. For the most part self-care treatments are typically not effective.
Transmission of the virus
Each person’s immune system responds differently to HPV. Not everyone who comes in contact with it develops warts. Even people in the same family react to the virus differently. No you don’t need to scrub the shower with bleach every time you use it.
The HPV strains that cause plantar warts aren’t highly contagious. So the virus isn’t easily spread by direct contact from one person to another. But it thrives in warm, moist places, so you might get the virus by walking barefoot around swimming pools or locker rooms. If the virus spreads from the first site of infection, more warts may grow.
Risk factors
Anyone can develop plantar warts, but this type of wart is more likely to affect:
- Children and teenagers
- People with weak immune systems
- People who have had plantar warts before
- People who walk barefoot in areas where a wart-causing virus is common, such as locker rooms and swimming pools
Complications
When plantar warts cause pain, you may alter your normal posture or gait — perhaps without realizing it. Eventually, this change in how you stand, walk or run can cause muscle or joint discomfort. They can also crack and bleed. Most people tend to pick at them and try to remove the little “seeds”. However, those are not seeds but more like tiny scabs from thrombosed capillaries in the skin.
Prevention
To help prevent plantar warts:
- Avoid direct contact with warts. This includes your own warts. Wash your hands carefully after touching a wart.
- Keep your feet clean and dry.
- Wear sandals or other foot protection when walking around swimming pools, in locker rooms or in gym showers.
- Don’t pick at or scratch warts.
- When using an emery board, pumice stone or nail clipper on your warts, choose one that you don’t use on your healthy skin and nails.
Plantar wart signs and symptoms include:
- A small, rough growth on the bottom of your foot, usually at the base of the toes or on the ball or heel
- On brown and Black skin, the growth may be lighter than unaffected skin
- Hard, thickened skin (callus) over a spot on the skin, where a wart has grown inward
- Black pinpoints, which are small clotted blood vessels commonly called wart seeds
- A cluster of growths on the sole of the foot (mosaic warts)
- A growth that interrupts the normal lines and ridges in the skin of your foot
- Pain or tenderness when walking or standing
Treatment:
At Elite we use Swift technology to treat warts.
WHAT IS SWIFT®?
Swift is a new technology, developed in the UK.. Swift uses microwave energy which is delivered through a
special probe applied to the skin to treat the affected tissue.
DOES IT HURT?
Like many treatments for skin lesions, some minor discomfort may be experienced. Before treatment
your podiatrist or dermatologist may decide to reduce the lesion with a blade. Pain levels vary from
person to person but most people undergoing Swift liken it to a pain similar to an injection or a scratch,
lasting 2 – 3 seconds then quickly subsiding.
WHAT CAN I DO AFTER TREATMENT?
In some cases the treated area may feel sore but will not prevent you undertaking normal daily activities.
HOW MANY TREATMENTS WILL I NEED?
This is dependent on how you respond to treatment. In some cases, you may need more than one
treatment (these can be from 14 days to over a month apart depending on the response). Your Podiatrist
or Dermatologist will be able to discuss this with you.
CAN ANYONE RECEIVE THIS TREATMENT?
With a few exceptions, most people with skin lesions would be able to have this treatment. Your
Podiatrist or Dermatologist will carry out an assessment prior to treatment and be able to advise you on
this.
