Since ancient times, ugly formations on the body have disturbed mankind. A wart on the foot is a skin disease caused by a virus. People with skin defects were shunned, fearing infection, and, having noticed a neoplasm on the sole of the foot or other part of the body, tried to remove it as quickly as possible. What people don't apply to their plantar warts, if only they'll go away forever. Until now, dermatologists have searched for the most effective and painless method of treating the disease.
What is a wart
The human papillomavirus causes a benign or oncological mutation of DNA in skin cells. The body is covered with papillomas, warts, papules. Over a hundred types of HPV have been studied. A wart is a growth on the skin that signals the presence of the first or third type of papilloma virus in the body. Neoplasms are potentially not carcinogenic, but extremely infectious due to the viability of the pathogen in the external environment.
What does a wart look like on the leg?
The plantar neoplasm has a round shape with clear edges of a few millimeters or centimeters. In the center, black dots of blocked capillaries are visible. On the leg, they look like old, dry calluses that have developed in the skin. The pain of plantar growth does not manifest itself under direct pressure, but during compression. The absence of papillary lines on the foot is characteristic.
Causes of plantar wart
HPV infections are more common during unprotected sex. The virus enters through microcracks in the mucous membranes of the genitals. Someone's HPV is "in transit" while others are less fortunate - the virus persists in the body, without noticing it for a long time. Dermatologists do not rule out that the appearance of papillomas on the surface of the feet is favored by immune disorders and infectious diseases.
Walking barefoot in public places: baths, swimming pools, body treatment rooms, shared bathrooms, on the beach, trying on barefoot shoes are the most common causes of plantar wart. The virus is viable outside of its host and "stalks the victim" on guest towels, tiles, washcloths, furniture, slippers, etc. The infection is drawn to the dense, tense areas of the skin on the plantar surfaces and palms, where the papilloma virus enters through minor wounds.
Warts on children's legs
Children are restless, often injured. Parents may not be aware of the presence of HPV in a child's body, which is obtained through cuts and abrasions. With weakened immunity, the virus becomes active, a papilloma appears on the leg. Painful methods of treating warts on the legs in children are often contraindicated and poorly tolerated. Often the child's body cope with this disease of the skin of the feet on its own.
Types of warts on the legs
Warts are a collection of skin lesions caused by the papilloma. According to the external manifestation, the impact on human health, the following types of warts are classified:
- vulgar (ordinary) - round keratinized blisters;
- flat - a rash in the form of spots rising above the skin;
- filiform (acrocords) - elongated with "torn" edges, formed in the folds of the body;
- genital warts - reminiscent of a rooster's comb;
- senile (keratomas) - occurring in the elderly, not associated with HPV.
Warts formations are localized throughout the body, on internal organs, in the oral cavity. Warts on the feet, called plantar warts, are a common type. One of the types includes the well-formed forms, which are a depression embedded in the skin, characterized by rapid growth. The appearance of subungual growths slightly lifts the nail plate.
Plantar warts treatment
It is dangerous to neglect the treatment of plantar warts. Neoplasms on the feet are constantly injured. They are removed to stop the appearance of new growth and the entry of infections. There is no complete cure for HPV. The treatment is reduced to turning the disease into "sleep mode". Medicines available, surgical removal, immunomodulatory plantar warts, using alternative medicine.
The disadvantage of the treatment of plantar growths lies in their location: the broad horny layer of the epidermis makes it difficult to supply active substances to the depth of the formation on the foot. In preparation for therapy, the top layer of the buildup is soaked and exfoliated. Traditionally, the treatment of warts on the feet begins with the use of salicylic acid. The wart of the foot is daily steamed in a bath for three months, disinfected, then the soft top layer is cleaned with a pumice stone, salicylic acid is applied and a patch is applied.
Pharmacy chains advise to get rid of a wart on the leg with the help of drugs containing celandine, phenol, trichloroacetic acid. The drugs cause tissue necrosis, relieving the patient of the deficiency, but leaving a scarring mark of a deep wart. Each disease is individual to varying degrees. Therefore, before choosing a method to remove a wart on the sole of the foot, you should seek the advice of your doctor.
Ointment
Depending on the mode of action, there are necrotizing, antiviral and herbal ointments. In the first case, the acid or alkali at the base of the ointment cauterizes the painful growth and leaves a scar. At home, for the treatment of the feet, you can use liquid solutions: with acetic, nitric, oxalic, lactic acids in the composition. To avoid burns, the surface of the neoplasm is strictly treated.
Antiviral ointment for warts on the foot is applied to the growth itself and the area around it to reduce the growth of the infection. They are used with special ointments. The herbal ingredients only affect the formation of the skin. Known for their effectiveness in the treatment of foot balm with applicator, colhamine ointment.
Modern methods of disposal
The advent of modern methods of wart removal has replaced the traumatic scalpel. Similar to the surgeon's knife, the electrocoagulator burns the neoplasm on the foot with current. After the removal procedure with a laser or radio waves, a depression remains on the foot. Healing takes several weeks. Exposure to liquid nitrogen is considered a very painful treatment and requires several treatments. In 2014, British dermatologists published an article on the latest antigen injection therapy. It will help patients who are resistant to existing treatments.
Folk remedies
Procedures with folk remedies for warts on the legs are carried out before bedtime, with the feet pre-steamed and for a long time. During handling, protect your hands with latex gloves against the spread of infection, disinfect all devices and objects used to prevent infection of loved ones. List of popular ways that are considered effective in getting rid of feet from a wart:
- Garlic is known for its antibiotic properties. In a neoplasm on the sole, the hardened top layer is cut off, a thin clove of garlic is applied.
- You can make "anti-beard paste". It is kneaded from finely grated garlic, vinegar, wheat flour, spread over the surface of the neoplasm and sealed with a plaster. After a few days, the paste is removed with the build-up.
- Apply an onion infused in vinegar to the foot, or you can rub the shoot with vinegar, then tie a fresh onion.
- You can fill the formation with the juice of medicinal plants: celandine, Kalanchoe, calendula, milkweed, dandelion, golden mustache, or tie a slice of apple, rowan, figs, potatoes, horseradish, cabbage. The procedure is carried out daily, for several weeks to several months, until the accumulation disappears.
- You can apply wood ash diluted in water to a creamy state.
- The growth is sprinkled with powdered ground chalk and wrapped with a bandage. The compress cannot be wet.
- Birch and willow bark containing salicyle have been shown to be effective in the treatment. The bark is applied to the foot, softening it beforehand with boiling water.
- Warm foot baths with sea salt, soda, laundry soap, tea tree oil or spruce broth help in the treatment of foot diseases. Treatments can be mixed or alternate.
- Absinthe broth applications are used. 3 tablespoons of dry wormwood herb are infused in a glass of boiling water, insisting for at least 2 hours.