The Quickest Way to Remove Plantar Warts
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My daughter had an ugly wart on the bottom of her foot which she showed to her general physician while there for a routine visit. Who knows how long it had been there, apparently for a while, but it had become bothersome, so she decided to mention it. Her doctor said it looked like a Plantar Wart and gave her a referral to the dermatologist for medication (love those HMOs).
What is a plantar wart? Also referred to as verruca, a plantar wart is caused by the human papiloma virus and its appearance resembles a head of cauliflower, sometimes with black specks. How do you get plantar warts? In this particular case, it was probably picked up during lacrosse season from walking around the locker room floor in bare feet, or from the showers. Spread by contact, in most cases by public showers, swimming pool areas and sharing shoes or socks. The warts can appear anywhere on the body, but most often show up on the soles of feet and palm of the hand.
Instead of waiting another month for an appointment with the dermatologist, I decided to check the internet and ask other friends/family about what they may have used to get rid of warts. We received some crazy responses that I thought I would share, before telling you what worked for us.
One recommended method was to tape a piece of banana skin to the wart before bed at night – it would be gone in about a month. Sounds buggy. No thanks!
Another home remedy was to use duct tape. Sounds like a solution my husband would use – duct tape for everything! It involves filing the wart down with a pumice stone and applying duct tape over the wart for a week at a time. If the tape starts to fall off, replace it. This treatment is supposed to work in about 2 to 3 weeks. Sounds like fun!
Yet another method is to apply clear nail polish to the wart over a period of 2 weeks. Somehow that doesn’t sound effective.
Finally, a recipe of two parts castor oil to one part baking soda, mix into a paste, apply to wart and cover with band-aid. Remember to clean foot and file with pumice before applying paste. Sounds messy.
We decided to go the over-the-counter route in hopes of finding a quicker solution. Many brands use adhesive pads treated with salicylic acid, which is placed on the ward after rubbing the wart with a pumice stone or file. There is another over-the-counter product that uses silver nitrate. Like home remedies and prescription treatments, multiple applications are usually necessary, however to what extent is subject to the severity of the wart and its reaction to the medication.
The first product we bought did not make any noticeable difference after two days, so we decided to check with a local pharmacist to see what he recommended. This Trans Ver Sal Plantar Patch Removal Kit worked in just a few days! He had it behind the counter instead of on the shelf with all of the other wart removal products, I am not sure why. So if you are looking for a quick an effective remedy for plantar warts, here you go….
Technorati Tags: Plantar Wart, get rid of warts, home remedy, over-the-counter
