Plantar warts can cause many unpleasant and sometimes very painful sensations to their owner.There are many ways to treat plantar warts: surgical removal, medications, physical therapy.Traditional medicine has shown good effectiveness in solving the problem;its secrets are quite simple and the ingredients are accessible to anyone.The article discusses what a plantar wart looks like, its causes and treatment methods.
Causes of plantar warts
Spikes or plantar warts are serious skin defects in the form of flat, scaly formations that can appear singly or in groups anywhere on the body, but most often appear on the soles of the feet and palms.Plantar warts cause the greatest discomfort;they can completely deprive a person of the ability to move.
Usually young people in their 20s and 30s are exposed to this scourge, although the occurrence of spikes has been observed in both the elderly and children.The main cause of this pathology is the human papillomavirus, which spreads quickly among people and is quite aggressive.
Plantar warts have no incubation period.In patients with a weakened immune system, the disease can appear within a few days after contact with the carrier of the infection;with a healthy immune system, there is almost no chance of warts appearing.
Factors, criteria and causes of plantar warts:
- Increased drying of the skin of the feet, reduced pH value, which protects the epidermis;
- Weak immunity;
- Vegetative-vascular diseases in which cyanosis of the limbs is observed;
- Injuries to the sole skin;
- Endocrinological diseases;
- Excessive sweating of the feet;
- Very tight and uncomfortable shoes made of low-quality materials;
- Hormonal disorders.
These conditions not only contribute to the formation and further proliferation of warts, but can also significantly complicate therapy, which in each specific case should be aimed at removing the tumor itself and eliminating the original cause.
Symptoms of plantar warts
A plantar wart is a rather unpleasant tumor, the pin root of which penetrates deep into the tissue and at the same time puts pressure on the nerve cells.As a result, painful sensations arise, which intensify when walking, and even more so when moving in shoes.
The main symptoms of plantar warts:
- thickenings on the skin similar to calluses;
- Small growths appear on the sole;
- Pain when touching the infected area and when walking;
- The color of the skin changes in a certain area of the sole.
The initial stage is characterized by the appearance of fleshy and smooth growths on the sole;the color of the skin around the lesion will be unnaturally dark or, on the contrary, very light.At first there is no pain, then it appears when the infected area is pressed, and later it gets worse with every touch and walking.
After about a month, another daughter wart usually appears near the first wart, but sometimes they appear in groups of several warts at the same time.These tumors cause a lot of discomfort and disrupt the normal rhythm of life;in some cases, a person is completely deprived of the ability to move independently, which leads to a loss of performance.
How to treat plantar warts with folk remedies?
The methods of traditional medicine have proven to be excellent in solving the problem.The tools and parts necessary for their implementation are very often found in every kitchen and every garden.The most effective folk methods for the treatment of plantar warts:
- Crush a medium onion into a paste and mix with vinegar.In order to prevent burns, cover the healthy skin around the wart, apply the resulting preparation to a piece of cotton, which must be fixed with a plaster or a bandage at the site of infection.It is advisable to apply this poultice all night before going to bed.After the second poultice, the wart gradually dies;you can get rid of it completely in a very short time.
- Instead of onions mixed with vinegar, you can also apply a plate of horseradish or garlic to the infected area.The effect will be the same.
- Celandine has been used since ancient times to remove warts.To get rid of them completely, the infected area should be smeared with the juice of the plant 5-6 times a day.After 15 days, there will be no trace of the unpleasant formations.An alternative solution can be herbal medicine, which can be purchased at any pharmacy along with instructions for use.It should be remembered that abuse of this drug can lead to the appearance of keloid scars.
- If most of the sole is infected with warts, fresh nettle can help.The ground plant should be placed on a burdock leaf and applied to the infected area.Secure with bandages or socks, preferably wool.Several of these procedures will get rid of plantar warts forever.
- Lemon peel tincture can easily be prepared at home.Finely chop the skin of two lemons, add 100 g of vinegar.Infuse this preparation for a week in a tightly sealed container.Treat the infected area with the expressed infusion, avoiding contact with healthy skin, three times a day.
Before performing the procedures described above, you need to steam your feet for half an hour;you can pour some soda in the water or add soap.Steamed soles are much more sensitive to this treatment, which guarantees a quick recovery.
Traditional medicine has been tested by the practice of many generations and, unlike modern medicines, has almost no contraindications.But if you don't see improvement within two weeks, see your doctor.
How to treat plantar warts with medication?
In some cases, plantar warts go away on their own after a while.Hoping for chance and waiting for a miracle, however, this disease can be started, tumors that have developed in the initial stage can usually be gotten rid of quickly and easily, even at home.
The most common means of combating the disease is salicylic acid, which can be purchased at any pharmacy.No doctor's appointment or prescription required.The liquid preparation is applied as a poultice to the infected area twice a day.You can buy a special patch;it is glued to the rash area of the sole and removed after two days.
Plantar warts can be treated well with a special topical preparation that contains blister beetle venom.Its use does not cause pain, however, a kind of blister may form at the treatment site, which opens and dries up in a few days.
Treating plantar warts is a very long process that requires patience and persistence.A vitamin complex should be used along with topical medications, as immunity plays an important role in the resolution of this disease.
Removal of plantar warts
There are several methods for removing plantar warts in a clinical setting, all of which are painful to some extent, but get rid of the problem in the shortest possible time.The main methods of removing tumors are:
- Any formation can be removed with a surgical scalpel;warts are no exception.The process itself is quite painful and must certainly be accompanied by anesthesia.
- With the help of a laser beam, the blood vessels near the infected area are cauterized, as a result of which tissue necrosis occurs and the wart, deprived of nutrition, dies.
- The method of electrocoagulation is the cauterization of a tumor with a high-frequency current.The process itself takes from a few seconds to a few minutes, it all depends on the thickness and size of the growth.
The removal of plantar tumors is used in cases where other methods do not bring a positive effect.Scars often remain after these procedures, but these methods remove warts quickly and at the same time as the roots.
Cryodestruction of plantar warts
This method consists of treating the tumor with liquid nitrogen at a temperature of -196 degrees.The cryodestruction method is expressed in the fact that during freezing, the part of the skin infected with viruses is destroyed by further stimulating the body's defenses.But it should be noted that when a wart appears and persists for up to six months, the effectiveness of getting rid of it is about 85%.At the same time, the effectiveness of removing tumors that have existed for more than six months drops to 40%.
The cryodestruction process can be performed:
- usually (liquid nitrogen is applied until a light halo of several millimeters is formed near the wart);
- aggressively (liquid nitrogen is continued for another 5-20 seconds after the formation of a bright halo around the wart).
Studies have shown that the aggressive freezing method is more effective than the traditional method, but the disadvantage is that it is much more painful.
After the removal of the wart, redness (hyperemia) and additional swelling can be observed in the affected area.A few hours later, a blister appears on the infected area (it can be a serous or hemorrhagic fluid), and about a week after the blister dries up, a crust appears on this area, which disappears on its own within 10-14 days.
Preventive measures and likely consequences
What are the risks if plantar warts are not treated?In its absence or improper treatment, tumors can multiply and spread to other parts of the body: face, hands.The aesthetic side of the problem probably does not require comments, but the treatment in this case takes much longer.
Any neoplasm can develop into a malignant form.Therefore, leaving plantar warts unattended is very dangerous.At the same time, human papillomavirus carriers are a source of infection for other people;their loved ones belong to the most likely risk group.
The importance of treating plantar warts is clear, but the preventive measures should not be forgotten:
- Mandatory compliance with personal hygiene rules;
- Refusal of uncomfortable and tight shoes;
- Wearing special individual shoes in common areas, such as saunas, baths, swimming pools;
- Treatment of any damage to the skin of the sole (scratches, wounds);
- use of vitamin complexes;
- Maintain pH with moisturizing foot care products.
Since the most important cause of this disease is a viral infection, the main preventive measures should be aimed at maintaining the immune system.Therefore, the main recommendations are personal hygiene and a healthy lifestyle.