Plantar Warts Flashcards
What is Plantar Warts?
Warts possibly rank somewhere in the top 10 problems that nobody’s comfortable talking about. This has a lot to do with the wives’ tales that speak of toads and uncleanliness. Now that society has transitioned from the dark ages of folk medicine into the days of medical science based on facts and technology, there’s no need to be ashamed.
Your foot doctor in New York can debunk the old stigmas. And Manhattan podiatrists are some of the best in the business at curing your ailments — warts and all.
Plantar Warts Explained
Plantar warts get their name from where they appear on your body — the bottoms of your feet. And your podiatry doctor in New York can assist you in dealing with your problem. Pretty much every person alive gets one or more warts somewhere at some point. It’s so common that it’s nearly unavoidable. And warts are especially common in children.
Like most warts, plantar warts are non-cancerous. They are skin growths caused by viral infections in the top layer of skin. The virus is called human papillomavirus, more commonly called HPV. There are actually many different strains of this virus, and they can affect various areas of your body. Manhattan podiatrists report that the HPV strain that causes plantar warts isn’t the same as the HPV that causes genital warts.
While plantar warts aren’t pretty, they aren’t malignant or even particularly harmful. They are, however, a contagious viral infection. They can spread or be passed to other people. Most warts go away on their own in a year or two even without treatment. While plantar warts can become irritated or painful, their biggest impact is that they can cause you to be self-conscious about your feet.
Symptoms of Plantar Warts
Plantar warts are generally small, but can get quite large. Most are the size of an eraser on the end of a pencil. Warts on your feet don’t protrude as far as warts on other areas of your body. They can appear alone or grow in groups or clusters. When this happens, they’re called mosaic warts, which is a pretty name for a less than attractive condition that your midtown Manhattan podiatrist can handle.
These warts have mistakenly been called seed warts. But as any best doctor in New York can tell you, warts don’t have seeds. Small blood vessels grow into the warts, appearing as little black dots in the center. Corns and calluses can also be mistaken for plantar warts. That’s why it’s best to have any questionable growths checked out thoroughly by your podiatrist.
Common Causes
Since they’re contagious, plantar warts spread from one foot to the other. They can also spread from person to person. This transmission can be indirect — by sharing shoes or standing in the same shower as an infected person.
Your risk of getting warts varies. If you have a weakened immune system or are predisposed to the virus, then your chances are higher. But you can take precautions to avoid infection. Wear sandals in locker rooms. Don’t share your shoes. Keep your feet clean and dry. Your podiatrist in Manhattan can give you a full list of precautions.
Diagnosis and Treatment
In most cases, your foot doctor in NYC can diagnose plantar warts by:
Simply examining the growth or lesion on your foot
Slicing the lesions and checking for the tiny blood vessels that are sometimes mistaken as seeds
Removing a small piece of the growth (biopsy) and sending it to the laboratory for analysis
Treatment for plantar warts comes in as many forms as there are old wives’ tales. Your foot doctor in New York may recommend over-the-counter wart treatments, which only work about half the time and work by peeling the wart off. As with most medical issues, you’ll receive the most effective treatments from a knowledgeable New York City’s foot doctor. Your podiatrist in midtown Manhattan can help you determine which treatments are best suited to your individual case. These treatments include:
Freezing the wart off cryogenically with liquid nitrogen. This is done exclusively at your podiatrist’s office, since it involves numbing your foot to lessen the pain of the cold.
Using a laser to remove your plantar warts. Pulsed-dyed laser treatments burn the tiny blood vessels so that they close and wart eventually dies.
Covering the warts or injecting medicine to strengthen your immune system can rid your body of the virus.
Stronger peeling medicines that feature salicylic acid work by removing layers of warts a bit at a time. Your podiatrist recommends applying the medicine on a regular basis at home and then coming in for a regular appointment at the office to monitor your progress.
Other acids your NYC foot doctor may use involve bichloracetic or trichloroacetic acids. These treatments require weekly visits to the office.
In some cases, minor surgery may be needed. It involves cutting the wart away or destroying it with an electric needle. This procedure requires local anesthesia because it can be painful or cause scarring. This is the least-used method in the treatment of plantar warts because of the risks inherently involved with surgery.
Vaccines against the HPV virus have been used to successfully treat and prevent warts.
Silver nitrate is also available as a solution or ointment to be applied topically.
Your Outlook
Foot warts are especially difficult to treat by your NYC podiatry doctor because they lay mostly below the surface, like an iceberg. Even when treatments are successful, it’s possible for a wart to reappear. If it’s not bothersome, podiatrists say it can be left alone. Your immune system is an amazing process that sometimes rids your body of unwanted tissues and infections without any intervention.
But with the assistance of a good New York foot doctor you can completely bypass the embarrassment of plantar warts. It’s always best to seek the advice of trained medical professionals. And Manhattan podiatrists are always willing to help you address any issues with your feet.
