Plantar Wart Treatment That Works

What You Need To Know

Understanding plantar warts, their symptoms, and how we treat them.

Understanding Plantar Warts

A wart is a small growth on the skin that develops when the skin is infected by a virus. Warts can develop anywhere on the foot, but they typically appear on the bottom (plantar side) of the foot. Plantar warts most commonly occur in children, adolescents, and the elderly. “Plantar” means “of the sole” in Latin. Unlike other types of warts, plantar warts are typically quite painful, as the pressure from walking and standing forces them to grow into your skin.

There are two types of plantar warts. A solitary wart is a single wart that often increases in size and may eventually multiply, forming additional satellite warts. Mosaic warts are a cluster of several small warts growing closely together in one area, and they are more difficult to treat. Underneath the skin, the wart can have finger-like roots that reach down and grow, making them difficult to treat from the surface.

Symptoms may include thickened skin that resembles a callus, pain when walking or standing, pain when squeezing the sides of the wart, and tiny black dots on the surface (dried blood in the capillaries). You may also feel like there are “painful pebbles” in your shoes.

Plantar warts are caused by direct contact with the human papillomavirus (HPV), specifically types 1, 2, 4, 60, and 63. Warts may be passed to another person through direct contact or by sharing towels and other objects.

If you suspect you have a plantar wart, it’s important to visit a podiatrist for evaluation. The longer you wait, the more likely the wart is to persist, so book an appointment with us and one of our specialists will be happy to help.

Swift Wart Treatment at Nevada Foot and Ankle

Are you tired of dealing with pesky warts? We are excited to offer Swift, an effective treatment for surface-based skin lesions, primarily warts. Swift is an FDA cleared technology that has proven to be highly effective in the removal of plantar warts. It delivers low dose microwave energy through a specialized probe that targets the underlying HPV virus by stimulating a natural immune response in the body. We like to say that we’re addressing the root cause, not the symptom.

The Swift protocol involves between 3 and 4 treatments, spaced 4 weeks apart, aligning with the body’s natural immune cycle. Each treatment lasts only 5 to 10 minutes and is what we call a “sock off, sock on” treatment: limited debridement, no breaking of the skin, and no bandages. No home treatment is required between visits, and patients can resume daily activities immediately after treatment.

While pain is variable and patient specific, most patients feel some level of discomfort as infected tissue temperatures are rapidly elevated over a 2 second dose of energy. The pain immediately subsides following cessation of energy delivery, and there is very limited post-procedural pain.

We also offer traditional options, including topical or oral treatments, cryotherapy (freezing), acid treatments, and surgery. Warts are stubborn and may return, so following your doctor’s instructions and attending follow-up visits is essential. Patients should never try to surgically remove warts themselves, as this can do more harm than good.

If you would like to explore Swift or other treatment options, our doctors can develop an effective course to get you back in action as soon as possible.