What are Warts?

These are lumpy growths that are caused by a virus called the human papillomavirus (HPV). There are about 100 types of the virus that cause different types of warts. The common types of warts are plantar and mosaic warts which are usually more resistant to pharmaceutical preparations. They are also deeper than other types.

Mosaic warts– they mostly attack the hands and soles of feet. They appear as closely parked clusters.

Plantar warts– they majorly affect the soles of the patient’s feet. They appear as hard bumps. Sometimes, they may have tiny, black dots on them.

This condition affects children. About a fifth of children aged between 12 and 16 years old could be affected by this condition.

Anyone is prone to warts. However, some factors that increase one’s chances include:

  • Skin injuries
  • Infections that could break the skin surface
  • Making the feet wet frequently
  • Hyper hydrolysis (frequent sweating of the hands and feet)
  • Direct contact with affected feet or hands
  • Shaving or scratching your warts. This could make the infection to spread to other body parts.

Treatments for warts offered

Warts can be very stubborn and difficult to treat. In some cases, they can even go away on their own as a person’s immune system provides its natural defense. However, in many situations this is unfortunately not the case. Warts on the feet in particular can often be painful and make walking and weight-bearing activity difficult. Also, in certain cases while we ignore or wait for them to disappear on their own they can spread throughout the body or get larger.

We have developed an extensive range of treatments designed to treat the most stubborn warts. These range from conservative treatments through to the more invasive treatments, such as surgery. Optimum Care Foot and Ankle Clinic has a treatment solution for most warts.

Topical & Occlusive Acid Treatments

Depending on the type, location and size of the lesions involved, we source and use a range of potent topically applied medicines used for the removal of warts. These treatments are typically painless and noninvasive. This makes them great for use in children.

Cryotherapy

The warts are frozen with liquid nitrogen resulting in a cold burn. This invokes an immune response to the HPV virus. It may take several regular cryotherapy treatments to get rid of warts and can be painful on large warts.

Curettage Surgery

Exercising the wart helps to include the healthy skin margins. The incision goes through the epidermis but not further than this. The podiatrist avoids cutting into the epidermis because doing so may cause scarring. An instrument called a curette is then used to loosen the part under the skin and scoop the whole wart as one piece. A mild acid called phenol is then applied on the part where the wart was to clean up any viral particles that were left behind. Regular dressing is then done until the wound is fully healed. Contact us on 03 9077 5915 for further assessment and treatment.