Foot warts
Warts on your feet
Warts are a virus in the skin resulting in skin changes in the form of small protuberances most commonly on the hands and feet. They are typically 4-5 mm in size and have an irregular surface. They may be dome-shaped, thin, flat, or node like. Dark dots will appear in the center of the wart when the top layer of the wart is scraped away. Warts are painful if squeezed. The warts can occur individually or in groups. The skin around the warts on the foot is often thickened. Warts located on the sole of the foot can be tender if exposed to pressure.
Warts are transmitted by direct or indirect contact. Warts are commonly transferred when in contact with another body part. Warts can also be spread to others through sharing towels, shaving implements, nail clippers or by direct contact. Foot warts can also be transmitted if you walk barefoot. This is especially common in swimming pools and changing rooms where the floor is wet.
Treatment
Most warts disappear by themselves, but this can take a long time, typically one or two years. There are a variety of treatments for warts, but are all based on destroying the skin where the virus is located.
There is no 100% effective treatment of plantar warts. Therefore, it is often a treatment which demands a level of patience.
Our clinic offers 100% co=pay in the treatment of plantar warts. The advantage of being treated in a private clinic is that a less painful treatment can be chosen. The wart is treated with LPT – Laser Photo Therapy, which is painless and without side effects. Laser treatment mobilizes the body’s natural immune system, thereby strengthening the body’s own ability to combat attacks by viruses. (See laser treatment)
Then the wart is cropped using the classical treatment technique, wherein the hardened layer of the skin is removed in and around the wart. Then drain liquid Verrutop® on our tissues.
The treatment is repeated at intervals of 7-14 days with results usually after 2-3 treatments. The treatment is less painful than freezing, and is therefore a suitable form of treatment in children.
Verrutop® is not an OTC prescription, and processing must be performed by practitioners, dermatologists or certified podiatrists. Verrutop® consists of a range of corrosive fluids and zinc which dry out the tissue by means of organic acids.
Your GP can refer you to a dermatologist for treatment of plantar warts. This treatment at the dermatologist is free for you.
AVOID INFECTION
Infection can be limited by covering the wart since small cracks and sores in the skin increase the risk of infection. Protect against warts by wearing socks / slippers at home and bathing shoes in the swimming pool as well as in public and private bathrooms / changing rooms. Warts are not transferred via blood. One is susceptible to warts if small cracks and sores exist in the skin.