Thread: Plantar Warts - fix or leave alone?

I've had a large plantar wart on my toe now for a few years. It doesn't change that I can tell. And, it really doesn't bother me to be honest.

I don't know much about them, so I was wondering if it's the kind of thing you must have removed? I've tried the home remedies, and they don't work. Since it doesn't bother me, I'm tempted to just leave it alone. Is there any harm in that? Do plantar warts grow, spread, etc.? Is it better to have it removed now? Or, is that necessary? Is it okay to just leave it be?

Have you tried the duct tape/debriding home remedy? It worked for me but you have to be patient. What you do is cover the wart with a small piece of duct tape. Once a day remove the tape, bathe and gently run an emory board across the wart a few times (that is the debriding part). Then put a new piece of duct tape on it. Eventually the wart will disappear but it can take weeks.

A friend had one surgically removed in the doctor's office and had a lot of pain and couldn't walk on that foot for days, etc. This is much cheaper and better!

*deleted - double post*

They are caused by a virus that can be transmitted, so whatever you decide to do about it, it would be a kindness to others to wear something on your feet when in public places.

Years and years ago my mom had plantar's warts very badly, they were all over the bottoms of her feet. She used vitamin E, she ingested capsules and I think at night might have even broken them open and rubbed the gel on the warts. It took a while for them to go away, and they got really sore, in fact she made an appointment at the Dr. to have them surgically removed but the day before her appointment, she woke up and every single wart was gone and she hasn't had them again since.

And I think the problem started at our local swimming pool as quite a few people got them around the same time, myself included, but mine cleared up with a vitamin E cream, they weren't as bad as my mom's. So yes, if you are in public places, please cover your feet because you could give them to other people.

The duct taped worked for me. I had two in my middle finger. I tried every thing and nothing worked but the duct tape. Just be patient and you'll see results.

I had a plantar wart removed from my foot when I was in high school and can tell you that the recovery period was rather long. I was supposed to stay off my feet for a while (can't remember how long but it seemed forever) but I disregarded that after a couple of days and had my stitches rip open. I would bet that removal techniques have improved a lot since then but you might want to consult with a medical professional to find out what is involved.

IMHO plantar warts probably wouldn't be helped by duct tape as they grow inside your foot, not on the outside (there isn't a bump but there is a mark or circle so you know where it is). I had them three times and they were awful and hurt. The first time the doctor carved them out with a scalpel over repeated sessions. The second time I got them burned off with liquid nitrogen. The last time I used OTC wart remover and put that on the mark as soon as I knew they were there (before it got out of hand) and kept at it until they were gone.

They are very contagious and spread to others as well as yourself. Every time I got them it was from dancing in bare feet (someone else obviously had them). I had to wear socks or slippers until they were perfectly healed. So even if you don't mind yours, as Gitanna said, please do not dance (or do anything) barefoot around others.

I had 5 of them removed from my heel a couple years ago. There were 5 because I waited years to get rid of one. I kept tape over it ALL the time - it was only uncovered when I changed the tape, and I never let it touch any bare surface, but plantar's warts are viral, and will spread.

When I was 12, my GP used liquid nitrogen. Horrible. But 30 years later, my podiatrist numbed my heel and used what he referred to as a tiny melon-baller. It didn't hurt, but recovery was long - probably because the big one was huge. So don't wait. Maybe recovery will be better on a toe than a heel. He also recommended Duofilm, if I saw them come back.

Planter warts on the bottoms of the feet can become extremely painful, a nightmare for a dancer. I had one under the ball of my foot that I did succeed in getting rid of on my own using an over-the-counter product, salycylic acid disks. I changed the disk every 48 hours and trimmed away/dug out the dead tissue each time using a pair of nail scissors. (sorry if that just caused anyone to ) The wart tissue itself was insensitive, it was the pressure up into the foot from the in-growing wart that caused pain. I recall it was very easy to see what tissue was wart vs. what was skin, so once I had it all out, I could tell.

HOWEVER, this took vigilant, consistent work to accomplish over about 3 weeks. I think often people fail at do-it-yourself plantar wart removal because it's hard to sustain that consistent effort all the way to the end, and if you don't make sure you finish the job, it just grows back. I was really motivated because I didn't want to put money into getting it done in a medical setting. What a dermatologist would do would be a lot more drastic and therefore, one hopes, quicker.

And yes they are caused by a virus that you can potentially pick up from the floor in a dance studio . . . or gym, sauna, pool, shower, etc.
Rosette

My mom's a nurse and said that they aren't a problem unless they hurt (I had one on my foot for years and years until it started hurting), but I didn't know about the spreading thing so thanks for the info! I ended up going to the doc and he froze it off with liquid nitrogen. It didn't hurt like hell, but the wart fell off and recovery was super quick (not like weeks for surgery). Some people have to get the freezing done more than once for it to work, but it's not surgery and it's effective.

I also did the over the counter plantar wart removers with another one and they worked, but like Rosette said, you have to make sure to do it every day consistently.

Oh, what a pain in the butt!!! Oh, yes, I ALWAYS wear shoes. And I FUSS at my dance sisters who do not wear shoes . . . it's ignorant not to wear them. I never had the warts until I started dancing barefoot in a restaurant on a regular basis, cuz that's what all the dancers I knew did. So, please PLEASE educate your dance students.

Also, one of the girls in my troupe is just recover from vasculitus that was cause by an infection in her foot (not proven, but likely from dancing barefoot). WEAR SHOES!!!!!!!!

So, I really REALLY don't want to mess with this. I wish it would just go away. When I tried home remedies, I worked hard at it for months. WHen I tried the patches, cutting away method, I was about half way through my toe. This one is VERY deep. I never could reach the little "seeds". I gave up, and it grew back.

The home freeze stuff didn't work either. I tried it over the course of a few months. no results at all.

I don't want to have to deal with it. :( I don't have time to deal with it. :( We have dance events almost every weekend between now and February. I just don't have time.

If I leave it alone, will I be worse off later. Can it really spread over my own foot? Would I end up with more later in life if I left it alone? Will it get deeper? Would I have to amputate my toe or something if it got too big?

in my case, the virus was brought on by stress. i got rid of the source of the stress, wart gone.

I had one and it spread and was irritating so I had them burned off at doctors.

Originally Posted by petitefifidance

I had one and it spread and was irritating so I had them burned off at doctors.

How long was your recovery? Did you have to stop dancing for a while?

When I had mine burned off with liquid nitrogen I was able to go to work (standing up job) right after.

I thought we had talked about this before. . .

http://www.bhuz.com/forum/off-topic/...tle-gross.html

My advice is still the same, get it taken care of. It's one less thing to have to worry about.

{{{HUGS}}}

Go to a doc. I had a friend with one and it just got bigger and deeper over time. He had to wear steel toed boots for 14-16 hours a day which I'm sure contributed to it's growth. His was large and I think went from 1 to 3 or more and he had to get them frozen multiple times to kill the little buggers. Get it treated and don't put it off. The longer you wait the harder it will be to deal with. Your feet are really important!!!

I've had success with the duct tape/debriding method. Duct tape alone will not work. You have to scrape away at the wart at least once a day, preferably after softening the skin in a warm bath.

Okay, I have a doctor's appointment for next week. Thanks for the advice all!

sooner is better than later. they eventually grow deep enough that they can't remove them without damaging your nerves, and in some cases even the bone. that is why mine won't leave, they have grown so deep into my finger that multiple laser sessions, which left craters in my fingers, didn't get rid of them, now they are quiet underneath the scar tissue, but never totally gone.

I had to have shots and skin graphs on the bottom of my foot because I waited and and it spread to my veins. I was also dumb and kept dancing off tilt and messed my hip up for life. Don't do it!

I've had warts on my fingers before. Doctors can freeze it off depending on how big it is.

However the last time I had a small one I tried a combination of 2 natural remedies.

First was apple cider vinegar at nights using cotton and bandaid. The wart should turn white. If it started to hurt I would stop and switch to coconut oil which heals the skin and is an anti viral. When it stopped hurting I'd hit it again with apple cider vinegar if it had not fallen off yet.

When the wart fell off I would continue with the coconut oil for a week or 2 after.

I've had two--or at least I think they were plantar warts. I dug them both out myself. A little painful and the second wasn't as easy as the first, but it worked. Of course, I did this before they got too deep, even though they didn't hurt at the time. Nip it in the bud!

If this isn't too late , ask your podiatrist about medication. I had a terrible time getting rid of one because I really didn't know what it was for a while but my podiatrist gave me an anti-acid medication (wish I could remember which one) and it has a crossover effect of helping to kill the virus. It saved me from surgery! Good luck, Aunna

Get them frozen off by the doctor. They are a virus and you could spread it to others.

My daughters picked up one each from swimming at the pools last year. The doctor froze them off and it took 3 times of freezing. The kids said it hurt but now they are gone which is a relief.

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