If you notice that you have some kind of odd looking spot on your foot, you might not be sure what it is. One of the things that it could be is a plantar wart. They can show up on your hands or your feet, but they are most common on the bottom of your feet, generally toward your heel. What are some signs that you have a plantar wart, and what are some symptoms of it?
Symptoms
One sign or symptom of a plantar wart is that you have an area of thickened callus. While calluses are common on the bottom of your foot because of use and bearing weight, this part of thickened callus is going to be pretty defined over one particular area, and will look even thicker than the rest of the callus.
Another symptom of a plantar wart is that the area will have little black pinpoints in it. Many people will call these wart seeds, because the spots go all the way down to the base of the wart. What they actually are is little blood vessels in the wart that have clotted, and what you are seeing is basically tiny pinpoint scabs.
Treatments
There are several things that you can do to treat your plantar wart. One thing you can do is to go see a podiatrist. They will have a variety of things that they can use. One is that they can freeze them off. They will use some chemicals that will freeze all the cells in and around the wart, which cause them to burst and die. Eventually, the wart should basically just fall off.
If that doesn't work, there are medications that the doctor can use that will basically burn it off. This can take longer than other methods, and you will have to go in and see the doctor for multiple treatments.
If those two methods don't work, the doctor can actually cut it out. They will give you a local anesthetic around the area, and once it has kicked in, they will actually just take a scalpel and get down to the base of the wart and cut it out. The podiatrist may also cut out some of the healthy skin around it, just to make sure that they get everything.
If you have noticed an odd spot on your foot, it may be a plantar wart. Seeing a doctor will let you get it diagnosed and treated. To learn more, visit websites such as http://www.camdencountyfootandankle.com.
