If you or your child develops a small, painful bump on the bottom of your foot, it’s probably a plantar wart. Warts usually aren’t a major concern, but they can affect your mobility and quality of life. At Greenwood Foot Clinic, board-certified podiatrist and foot surgeon Mark Lazar, DPM, and podiatrist and foot surgeon Stephen Tentler, DPM, and the team, provide various treatments for plantar warts. To make an appointment, call the office in Greenwood or Martinsville, Indiana, or book online today.
Plantar warts are small, skin-colored growths that form on the weight-bearing areas of the feet. They occur when human papillomavirus (HPV) enters the body through small cuts or breaks in your skin.
Plantar warts affect people of all ages, but they’re most common in children and teens. If your child has warts and they don’t improve with over-the-counter treatments, contact the team at Greenwood Foot Clinic.
Symptoms of plantar warts include:
Depending on the location of the warts, you might also have difficulty working or exercising.
Make an appointment with the team at Greenwood Foot Clinic if you have plantar warts and they bleed or change appearance. You might also make an appointment if the warts interfere with your daily routine or you have an underlying medical condition, like diabetes, that increases your risk of infection.
There are several things you can do to reduce the risk of plantar warts. The team at Greenwood Foot Clinic recommends:
If you have a family member with warts, you should also avoid sharing nail clippers or other similar items with them.
The team at Greenwood Foot Clinic diagnoses plantar warts during an in-office visit.
Your provider reviews your medical records, asks about your symptoms, and examines the bottom of your feet. Plantar warts are visible to the eye, but your provider might also order X-rays, a CT scan, or an MRI, to see if there are any other underlying issues.
If your provider suspects the lesion is something other than a wart, they might take a biopsy and send it to a lab for analysis.
The team at Greenwood Foot Clinic offers several treatments for plantar warts, including:
If you only have one or two warts, your provider might prescribe salicylic acid. Salicylic acid is a medication that causes the wart to peel off in layers. Treatment is quick, effective, and provides lasting relief.
If you have several warts and they don’t improve with prescription medication, your provider might recommend cryotherapy. During cryotherapy, your provider uses liquid nitrogen to freeze the wart. Freezing the wart causes the skin to die and peel off.
To learn more about the treatment options for plantar warts, make an appointment at Greenwood Foot Clinic by calling the nearest office or booking online today.