Foot warts are also known as plantar warts. Unlike other warts, these warts grow into the skin instead of out of the skin. A plantar wart appears like a small hole at the bottom of the foot surrounded by hardened skin. They can make walking uncomfortable.

What causes plantar warts?Warts are caused by the HPV virusthat enters the body through weak spots at the bottom of the feet or tiny breaks and cuts in the skin. You can consider self-care treatment or visit a podiatrist to have them removed.

Diagnosis is by

• Examining the lesion
• A shave biopsy,that is removing a small section of the lesion and sending it to the laboratory.
• Paring the lesion to check for signs of dark pinpoint dots (tiny clotted blood vessels).

Foot wart removal

Plantar Wart Removal Houston are harmless and they can go away without treatment. If they are spreading or painful you want to treat them with over the counter medications. Sometimes repeat treatment is necessary to reduce the risk of reoccurrence of warts. The podiatrist may recommend the following treatments for foot wart removal.

• A strong peeling medicines

The foot doctor may recommend medication with salicylic acid that removes layers of warts little by little. The medicine stimulates your immune system to be able to eliminate the wart. It is applied regularlyat home with occasional doctor visits for a progress report.

• Cryotherapy

This is also known as the freezing medicine where the doctor applies the liquid nitrogen to the wart using a cotton swab or spray. It maybe painful because it causes a blister to form around the wart. Cryotherapy stimulates the body to fight viral warts and the dead tissue sloughs off in seven days. The treatment is repeated every two weeks to completely get rid of the foot warts.

If these two first options do not work the doctor may recommend more foot wart removal procedures

• Other acids

The doctor shaves the surface of the wart then applies trichloroacetic acid. This treatment is repeated every week though it has a stinging or burning sensation.

• Immune therapy

The doctor injects the wart with an antigen or cream/solution that is applied to the wart to stimulate the immune system to fight viral warts.

• Minor surgery

In wart removal surgery the doctor uses an electric needle to destroy the wart or cut away the wart. This can be painful though the doctor numbs the area first and it is only used if all other methods fail.

• Vaccine

Though the vaccine is not specifically used to treat warts, its properties target the prevention of various warts.

Seek immediate medical attention if you notice signs of wart infection such as pus or bleeding around the wart. If the wart is painful or its color changes or if you have immune deficiency diseases or underlying conditions such as diabetes see a podiatrist. Warts can be uncomfortable, and they may respond well to over-the-counter drugs. Warts can be contagious so avoid sharing or using tools used on warts on any other part of the body.