Plantar Wart Removal Using Surgery
Plantar wart removal is not something doctors typically recommend. There are a number of reasons for this, but it might first be imperative to discuss why one might want to have a plantar wart removed. Plantar warts are little warts that form most often on the bottom of your foot, though they do sometimes form on the sides and toes of your feet. When on the sides and toes, they are more obvious. Not only because you have better visibility of the warts, but because they look like actual warts.
When on the bottom of your foot, many people don't even know they have a plantar wart. Because you spend so much time on your feet, the plantar wart forming on the bottom of your foot is subject to your full body weight on a regular basis. This causes the wart to find it nearly impossible to form outward, causing it instead to form inside the skin of your foot and head upward. Sometimes it looks like nothing more than a piece of dry skin that's blistered over a bit. Other times, it appears to protrude a bit more, though this typically only occurs when a wart is first forming.
These warts are caused by exposure to the HPV strain that causes warts on the foot. There are more than 100 different strands of the HPV virus, each one causing some other issue that you'll have to deal with. However, if you do contract this particular strand of HPV, you have nothing to worry about other than a few warts on your foot.
If you're worried that you might have been exposed to the HPV virus, ask yourself a few questions. Have you spent time in a warm, damp environment lately without wearing shoes? Do you have any open sores, cuts, or extremely dry and cracked skin on your feet? If so, you might have been exposed to and contaminate with this particular strand of HPV. It is most commonly found around pools, showers, gyms and bathrooms. It's not impossible to catch at home if someone else has the virus, but it's more common to catch it from a public area such as a hotel pool or gym shower.
Chances are very high that you did not catch your plantar wart from someone else by direct contact with their skin or feet. This is a virus that is highly contagious when you are in its natural environment, but it's not one that's contagious from human to human contact.
Plantar Wart Removal
Plantar wart removal is not always recommended by health professionals because it is a health issue that goes away on its own. Your immune system will cause your wart to disappear over time. However, if you have one of the rare warts that causes pain or your immune system is compromised by another health issue, your doctor might try one of several different forms of removal.
The first is freezing it off. Your doctor will use liquid nitrogen to freeze your wart right off your foot. This will not happen immediately, though. Your wart will begin to die because it's frozen. You will see a blister form around the wart and begin to slough off the wart within one week. The downfall to this method of removal is that it is painful and the blisters it causes are difficult to live with for a week.
Cantharidin is a chemical from a beetle that your doctor might use to remove your plantar wart. It is slathered onto your wart and covered with a bandage. A blister will form and you will live with it for approximately one week until your doctor sees you again to remove the dead wart. It is killed thanks to the application of the chemical, but it does take time to work.
Surgery is sometimes used to remove a plantar wart, though it is often painful. Your doctor will use a needle to cut the wart right out of your skin after using anesthesia to numb the area around your wart. It is effective, but it is painful. Another type of surgery commonly used to get rid of plantar warts is laser surgery. This type of surgery is performed using a laser to kill the virus in your foot by closing the contaminated vessels. This causes the wart to eventually die and fall right off your foot. Again, it is a painful procedure that is not typically recommended unless you have other issues.
When on the bottom of your foot, many people don't even know they have a plantar wart. Because you spend so much time on your feet, the plantar wart forming on the bottom of your foot is subject to your full body weight on a regular basis. This causes the wart to find it nearly impossible to form outward, causing it instead to form inside the skin of your foot and head upward. Sometimes it looks like nothing more than a piece of dry skin that's blistered over a bit. Other times, it appears to protrude a bit more, though this typically only occurs when a wart is first forming.
These warts are caused by exposure to the HPV strain that causes warts on the foot. There are more than 100 different strands of the HPV virus, each one causing some other issue that you'll have to deal with. However, if you do contract this particular strand of HPV, you have nothing to worry about other than a few warts on your foot.
If you're worried that you might have been exposed to the HPV virus, ask yourself a few questions. Have you spent time in a warm, damp environment lately without wearing shoes? Do you have any open sores, cuts, or extremely dry and cracked skin on your feet? If so, you might have been exposed to and contaminate with this particular strand of HPV. It is most commonly found around pools, showers, gyms and bathrooms. It's not impossible to catch at home if someone else has the virus, but it's more common to catch it from a public area such as a hotel pool or gym shower.
Chances are very high that you did not catch your plantar wart from someone else by direct contact with their skin or feet. This is a virus that is highly contagious when you are in its natural environment, but it's not one that's contagious from human to human contact.
Plantar Wart Removal
Plantar wart removal is not always recommended by health professionals because it is a health issue that goes away on its own. Your immune system will cause your wart to disappear over time. However, if you have one of the rare warts that causes pain or your immune system is compromised by another health issue, your doctor might try one of several different forms of removal.
The first is freezing it off. Your doctor will use liquid nitrogen to freeze your wart right off your foot. This will not happen immediately, though. Your wart will begin to die because it's frozen. You will see a blister form around the wart and begin to slough off the wart within one week. The downfall to this method of removal is that it is painful and the blisters it causes are difficult to live with for a week.
Cantharidin is a chemical from a beetle that your doctor might use to remove your plantar wart. It is slathered onto your wart and covered with a bandage. A blister will form and you will live with it for approximately one week until your doctor sees you again to remove the dead wart. It is killed thanks to the application of the chemical, but it does take time to work.
Surgery is sometimes used to remove a plantar wart, though it is often painful. Your doctor will use a needle to cut the wart right out of your skin after using anesthesia to numb the area around your wart. It is effective, but it is painful. Another type of surgery commonly used to get rid of plantar warts is laser surgery. This type of surgery is performed using a laser to kill the virus in your foot by closing the contaminated vessels. This causes the wart to eventually die and fall right off your foot. Again, it is a painful procedure that is not typically recommended unless you have other issues.
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