Are Warts a Health Concern?

Plantar warts are hard growths that show up on the sole of your foot. Like all warts, they’re benign because they’re not cancerous and don’t endanger your life.

However, just like all other warts, they can significantly lower your quality of life. And, like other warts, they’re highly contagious. That means you can spread them to other people or other parts of your body if you’re not careful.

At North Park Podiatry, our expert podiatrists treat and remove painful plantar warts, including those that spread or create difficulties in your daily life. We offer several therapies to remove warts at our San Diego, California, offices.

Are warts a health concern? Here’s when to treat your warts.

Warts are caused by HPV

All warts are caused by one of the many strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV). They’re highly contagious and easily spread.

You may have picked up HPV while walking barefoot in a public space. Small cuts or fissures in your skin allow the virus entry.

That's why it’s so important to wear flip flops or shower shoes when you’re in a public bathroom, gym, or pool. It’s also why you should never share footwear or foot-care items with anyone.

Because warts are highly contagious, they’re also quite common. About 10% of adults in the United States have plantar warts. Up to 20% of kids and teenagers have them, probably because they’re more likely to go barefoot in public spaces.

Warts can be painful

The largest part of a plantar wart is burrowed deep in your skin. You only see the tip of your foot. They often appear like a hard, raised center surrounded by a ring of rough skin.

Left alone, plantar warts don’t usually hurt. But if you press them, you might feel pain.

Since you walk on the soles of your feet, the warts are often subjected to pressure, which could be painful. That discomfort can change your gait and alter your foot’s alignment, putting you at risk for other foot problems.

You may develop plantar warts on your:

Soles
Balls of the feet
Toes
Heel

If your wart hurts, you can ease the pain with wart and corn pads from your local pharmacy, which takes the pressure off when you walk.

If the warts are small and the pain is mild, you might also benefit from over-the-counter remedies with salicylic acid, but be sure to follow the directions.

You can spread your warts

Warts are an infection with HPV. Because it’s a virus, HPV is always ready to find another host. If you pick at your warts — or if your kid picks at their warts — they may spread to other areas of your feet or even other areas of your body.

If you live in a household where people share a bathroom, even stepping on a bathmat with a wart risks spreading it to someone else. If you think your or your kids’ plantar warts are at high risk for infecting others, come in for treatment.

Warts that change are a concern

Warts can grow larger, more numerous, or more painful over time. However, other conditions often look like warts, including certain types of skin cancer. See us immediately if you notice changes such as:

Bleeding
Oozing
Severe pain
Warmth
Change in color
Change in shape

Basal cell carcinoma lesions often look like warts. Early detection and treatment can cure most skin cancers, so if your lesion starts changing, see us right away.

Warts can be removed

If you don’t want to wait and see if your warts worsen, or if they already affect your comfort and gait, we have several methods of removing them. Some options include:

Freezing them with liquid nitrogen
Scraping them off
Peeling them with salicylic acid or other chemicals
Destroying them with lasers

Once they’re gone, warts could be gone for good. However, it’s important to remember that HPV never leaves your body. Theoretically, the infection could cause another wart in the future, and it often does. That’s why we may also recommend immunotherapy.

Immunotherapy trains your body to fight the HPV infection. We may apply a chemical called diphencyprone (DCP) to your wart. This causes a mild allergic reaction that removes the wart.

Are you troubled by the appearance, pain, or gait disturbances caused by warts? Or do you worry they can spread throughout your family? Call us today at 619-283-2097 for wart removal or fill out our online appointment form.