Plantar Warts - How To Remove Them?

2024 Author: Josephine Shorter | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 21:43

Plantar warts

Plantar warts are benign growths that appear as small growths. The cause of their occurrence is HPV. According to various sources, from 70 to 90% of people are infected with the human papillomavirus. The place of localization of plantar warts is the support areas of the foot or toes.

The average age of a patient with plantar warts is 20-30 years. In this case, more than half of the warts go away on their own, without outside interference.

Thorns are the most common name for plantar warts. This term is often used colloquially by ordinary people. Infection with strains of the human papillomavirus leads to the formation of skin growths.

Content:

• Causes of plantar warts
• Plantar wart symptoms
• How to remove a plantar wart?
• How to relieve pain?
• Treatment of plantar wart with folk remedies

Causes of plantar warts

A wart is a visible manifestation of HPV that a person is infected with. There are many strains of the virus - about 100. After entering the body, they may not show themselves for a long time. Their activity is inhibited by the human immune system, as well as phagocytosis. Phagocytosis is the body's defense system that attacks and destroys pathogens that enter it.

The likelihood of infection increases in the following cases:

• The virus is very active.
• The person is in direct contact with the virus.
• Human immunity is weakened.

There are many carriers of the virus - about 90% of people. However, plantar papillomas do not appear in every person. It all depends on the state of the immune system. The risk of their occurrence increases when the human body is influenced by risk factors, including: emotional overstrain, overwork, non-compliance with the rules of personal hygiene, that is, all situations that lead to a weakening of immunity.

You can get infected with the HPV virus even by shaking hands with an infected person, or while using someone else's slippers or towels.

If we consider the risk factors in general, then the following can be distinguished:

• Hyperhidrosis of the feet. Excessive sweating leads to loosening of the dermis, which facilitates the penetration of the virus into its deep structures.
• Damage to the skin and mucous membranes with the formation of small cracks, abrasions and scratches on it. They are the gateway to infection.
• Uncomfortable shoes that chafe the foot. Through abrasions and calluses, the virus can easily penetrate into the deep structures of the skin.
• Diseases that impair the nutrition of the tissues of the foot, for example, diabetes mellitus or atherosclerosis of the lower extremities.
• Use of non-sterile nail tools.
• Visiting the pool, sauna, bath - any place where contact of the foot with the seeded floor surface may occur.

Human skin is represented by several layers: epidermis, dermis and subcutaneous fat. HPV affects the epidermis - its basal layer. Reproducing, the cells of the virus penetrate into all layers of the skin. Outwardly, it looks as if the skin of the foot has hardened.

What is HPV? HPV belongs to the papovirus family that can infect the mucous membranes of organs and skin epithelial cells. The virus has its own DNA, which invades human cells and forces them to produce new virus particles.

All HPV strains are divided into 2 large groups:

• With oncogenic properties, that is, those that can cause cancerous tumors.
• No oncogenic potential.

The appearance of plantar warts causes the first type of HPV, but sometimes they can appear when the body is infected with the 2 and 4 types of HPV. These papillomaviruses are not oncogenic.

All people who are sexually active are infected with HPV. The most dangerous strains are strains 6, 11, 16, 18. They can cause the appearance of genital warts, papillomas and lead to their malignancy.

Plantar wart symptoms

The inactive virus is found in the basal epidermis. He slowly recreates his own copies, which are not capable of damaging the stratum corneum.

If the virus is active, then it multiplies rapidly, penetrates into the upper layers of the skin and manifests itself with the following symptoms:

• A shiny plaque appears on the sole, which after a short time becomes keratinized and becomes rough to the touch.
• A plantar wart can have a size of 2 cm. They rise above the skin surface by 3 mm. The shape of the wart is round or oval. The maternal wart appears first on the skin, it will be the largest in size, daughter growths grow from it, which are slightly smaller. As the disease progresses, warts may coalesce into one large plaque.
• Warts hurt because there is significant pressure on them while walking. The growth is trapped between the sole and the bone and can press on the nerve endings. In this case, a person will experience pain every time when he steps on the affected leg.
• The color of the wart is light brown or yellowish white.
• The stratum corneum may be covered with black dots. These are the capillaries that penetrate the skin in the affected area. They thrombosed, which led to the appearance of the corresponding points. It is thanks to these "specks" that one can distinguish a wart from a corn.

How to remove a plantar wart?

You can remove a wart in a doctor's or beautician's office quickly, safely and painlessly. Difficulties can arise if the wart has penetrated into the deep layers of the dermis.

Indications for removal:

• The build-up hurts a person.
• The growth is bleeding.
• The growth is large.
• Blotches appear on the wart.
• The wart grows rapidly.

You can remove a wart in the following ways:

• Removal by laser beam.
• Removal with nitrogen.
• Cauterization with high frequency currents
• Radio wave removal of the build-up.
• Surgical removal of the wart.

Cryodestruction

The wart is exposed to liquid nitrogen. Its temperature reaches -196 ° C. When a wart is treated with such low temperatures, its cells are destroyed and die off. The skin at the site of exposure activates the immune defense. If the age of the wart is less than six months, then it will be possible to get rid of it with a high degree of probability (up to 84%). If the wart exists on the skin for more than six months, then the success rate drops to 39%.

The procedure can be routine or aggressive. In the first case, the build-up is exposed to liquid nitrogen until a light halo appears around it. With an aggressive method of exposure, the wart is treated for another 5-20 seconds after a light-colored halo appears around it.

As practice shows, the aggressive method of removing warts is more effective than the conventional method of removal.

The skin at the site of exposure will redden and swell. After a few minutes, a bubble filled with liquid will appear on it. After a week, this bubble will dry out, and a crust will form in its place. It will disappear within 14 days, you cannot tear it off.

Recommendations for skin care after removing the build-up from it:

• The liquid bubble should not be opened.
• The place of processing does not need to be sealed with adhesive plaster.
• A bandage can be made to prevent infection of the wound.
• Twice a day, the wound is treated with alcohol at a concentration of 2%.
• Avoid getting water on the treated skin area.

Advantages of plantar wart removal by cryodestruction:

• The tissues heal quickly, no scars remain in the treatment area.
• Treatment does not require anesthesia.
• The build-up removal time is 2 minutes.

Cons of cryodestruction:

• If only the superficial layers of the skin have been treated, the wart may form again.
• A pigmented spot may appear on the part of the skin where the wart used to be.
• If the deep layers of the skin were treated, then a scar may remain on it.

Laser coagulation

Removing a wart with a laser is reduced to cauterization of overgrown tissues. The beam coagulates blood vessels, sealing their lumen, thus avoiding bleeding.

Laser coagulation can take place in one of the selected ways:

• Removal with carbon dioxide laser. The wart is exposed to infrared light. At the same time, it is impossible to achieve a selective effect, therefore, there remains a high probability of injury to healthy skin. The success rate of therapy is 70%.
• Erbium laser removal. The wavelength with this method of removal is only 2940 nm, versus 10600 nm, as when treating the skin with a carbon dioxide laser. This method of removing the wart reduces the risk of scarring on the skin. The success rate of therapy is 75%.
• Removal by pulsed dye laser. This wavelength is only 586 nm. In this case, energy is absorbed by oxygenated hemoglobin. The capillaries of the wart are destroyed in the first place, in parallel, immunity is stimulated. The success rate of therapy is 95%.

After the wart is removed, a crust forms in its place. It will disappear within 10 days. It is not recommended to lubricate it with any means with an antiseptic effect. Do not wet the wart.

Pros of laser wart removal:

• No scars remain at the site of removal.
• The tissues heal quickly.
• The likelihood of reappearance of the build-up is minimal.
• Healthy tissues are practically not affected.

The only drawback of the procedure is its high cost.

Removal of plantar warts by electrocoagulation

The wart is destroyed by high frequency currents. The procedure requires local anesthesia. The coagulation loop is applied to the wart. It is a source of current that causes the death of growth cells. In the treatment area, the temperature is very high, which allows capillaries to coagulate and prevent the development of bleeding.

After removing the wart, a crust will appear in its place, which after 10 days or earlier will fall off on its own.

After the procedure, the following recommendations must be observed:

• The affected area of the skin should not be exposed to water.
• The crust cannot be removed, it must fall off on its own.
• During the first week, you need to treat the skin with solutions that have an antiseptic effect. The frequency of the procedure is 2 times a day.

Pluses of electrocautery:

• The procedure is not expensive.
• During its implementation, there is no risk of bleeding.
• The procedure does not take more than a minute in time.

Cons of electrocautery:

• With its help, it will not be possible to remove a small build-up.
• After the treatment of the skin, a scar may remain on it.
• If the superficial layers of the dermis have been treated, then the likelihood of a relapse of the disease remains.

Radio wave surgery method

The wart is removed using a special electrode that emits radio waves. This leads to the fact that the cells of the wart are simply evaporated from the surface of the skin. During the procedure, the vessels are cauterized, which prevents the development of bleeding. In the place where the skin growth used to be, a crust forms. In a few days it will disappear on its own.

The first 2 days after the removal of the build-up, the treatment site should not be wetted with water. The crust must not be torn off mechanically.

The advantages of the method include:

• Healthy tissues are not affected during the procedure.
• Scars at the site of skin treatment are rare.
• The risk of recurrence of the wart does not exceed 5%.

The only drawback of this method is the high cost of the procedure.

Surgical removal of the wart

In this case, the doctor cuts out the wart with a scalpel. It is imperative to perform local anesthesia. A suture is applied to the wound. They take it off in a week or a little earlier. The main advantage of the method is that it can be used to get rid of large growths.

The disadvantages of surgical excision include the fact that after such an effect on the skin, scars may remain on it. The likelihood of relapse also remains.

After removing the wart, the following guidelines should be followed:

• The crust that appears in its place is not torn off and is not removed.
• Do not allow water to enter the treated skin area.
• Do not expose your skin to direct sunlight.
• The crust is not smeared with any creams or ointments.
• For 30-60 days, it is forbidden to visit the pool, sauna and bathhouse.
• For the fastest tissue regeneration, you need to take vitamin complexes.

If the skin area does not heal for a long time, or becomes inflamed, then you need to see a doctor.

Contraindications that are the same for any method of removing warts:

• Diabetes.
• Malignant neoplasms.
• The period of bearing a child.
• Inflammation of the skin around the growth.
• Herpes in acute form.
• High body temperature.
• High blood pressure.

How to relieve pain?

The use of orthopedic insoles allows you to relieve stress on the foot. The fact is that to reduce pain, a person tries not to step on the affected area. This leads to the fact that the load on the foot is distributed unevenly and incorrectly. Insoles help reduce pain and enable a person to move around normally.

It is necessary to select insoles together with a doctor, taking into account the person's weight, the size of his legs and the characteristics of the course of the disease.

It is recommended to wear shoes with low heels. The use of insoles allows you to stretch your muscles and ligaments, as well as absorb sudden impacts of the foot on the ground. They can be made from natural and synthetic materials. In the first case, the price of the product will be higher.

Treatment of plantar wart with folk remedies

Plantar warts are painful when walking. To reduce its intensity, you can use physiotherapy methods. Gymnastic complexes aimed at developing the plantar fascia and wearing orthopedic insoles also help reduce painful sensations.

Also, some recipes are popularly used:

• Treating warts with garlic. Garlic can be used to treat plantar warts. It is applied to the problem area of the foot in the form of a compress. To do this, a few cloves of garlic are passed through a press, and the resulting gruel is applied to the wart itself and around it at a distance of 2-2.5 cm. The treated skin area is bandaged and wrapped with plastic wrap. The holding time of the compress is from 4 to 6 hours. Then the leg needs to be rinsed with cool water. If the skin is sensitive, then the garlic compress can provoke irritation and even cause a burn. Therefore, the dermis surrounding the wart can be sealed with adhesive tape. If a burning sensation occurs in the foot, you must immediately stop the procedure, wash off the garlic gruel with water and apply a cream with panthenol to the skin. Treatment should continue as long asuntil the wart is completely removed.
• Dimexide from plantar warts. To get rid of a wart, you need to apply Dimexide diluted with water in a 1: 5 ratio on it. To prevent the ointment from spreading, a napkin is impregnated with it, which is applied to the affected areas. The napkin is covered with wax paper from above, and a sock is put on the leg. You need to withstand the compress for 30 minutes. The course of treatment lasts 7-14 days. If during this time it was not possible to get rid of the wart, then you need to take a week break and repeat it again.
• Iodine, salt and honey. To get rid of plantar warts, you can use a mixture of iodine, salt and honey. To prepare the medicinal composition, you need to combine 50 g of iodine, a teaspoon of honey and the same amount of salt. The resulting mass is applied to a gauze folded in several layers and the application is fixed in the area of the skin growth. Above the leg is wrapped in polyethylene and a warm sock is put on it. Leave the applique overnight. In the morning, the mixture is not washed off immediately. With her you need to walk around the house for another 20 minutes, only after that you can go to the shower. The course of treatment should continue for 5 days.
• Medical bile against warts. Compresses should be made with medical bile. They are applied to the plantar wart for a day. Then take a break for 30 minutes, after which the compress is applied to the skin again. The course of treatment can last 1-2 months.

The author of the article: Kuzmina Vera Valerievna | Endocrinologist, nutritionist

Education: Diploma of the Russian State Medical University named after NI Pirogov with a degree in General Medicine (2004). Residency at Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry, diploma in Endocrinology (2006).