A Review: Home Plantar Wart Remover

So, what are plantar warts anyway? How do you get them? More importantly if you do have them how do you get rid of them?

Normally, I am not one to shy away from using photos to help get my point across. However, many photos of warts, especially plantar warts, could be considered disturbing to some readers. This being the case I will not include any visual aides (also my pictures, which were not graphic, didn't turn out very well and the before and after pictures didn't turn out very well).

If you really want to see pictures of plantar warts I suggest you do a quick google search. I assure you, you will find what you are looking for.

When they are painful or if you feel that they are simply too unsightly to remain on your feet there are many at home remedies you can try. In some cases these home remedies do not effect the wart and the wart does not go away on its own. In this case you might want to consider visiting your doctor and pursing a more aggressive form of treatment.

When warts change in color, multiply, or begin to disrupt daily activities it is a wise idea to seek medical treatment and forego at home treatments. Of course, anytime you are unsure if you are dealing with a wart or a different kind of lesion you should seek out your doctor.

Plantar warts are caused by the human papilloma virus. That's right HPV causes plantar warts. This doesn't mean that you will fail your next pap screen if you have plantar warts. There are many different strains of HPV. Many people refer to the black dots inside of plantar warts as seeds. This is incorrect as warts are not grown from seeds. They are simply tiny blood vessels that have been cut off from the rest of the body by the growing wart. For the most part plantar warts are nothing to be too concerned about. In many cases they go away on their own and do not require any treatment.

The virus itself is not too contagious. The risk factors increase with risky behaviors like walking barefoot in public pools or showers. As with most things people with weakened immune systems are at a higher risk of developing plantar warts.

There are many different at home removal options. Some people swear by using duct tape. Others feel that putting a little apple cider vinegar on a cotton ball and securing it with a band aide will do the trick. I've even read about some people that cut them off themselves at home. (For the record I do not recommend this practice at all!)

There are also some over the counter products that you can try in the comfort of your own home. There are at home wart freezing kits and then there are salicylic acid pads. Personally, I would rather give these two products a try than stick duct tape on my feet or have my feet smell like vinegar for a few days.

I, like many other people in the world, had the misfortune of finding warts on my feet. I have no idea when or where I got them from. Its possible that I got them from the shower at the gym (though I always wore flip flops). Its also possible I got them from the floor around the pool at the gym (after all you can't jump in the pool with flip flops on). Its possible I got them from the shower at work. I never felt any pain and they started out very small so I just thought that they were callous and went about my day. I must have had the first one for over a year before it started to spread on my foot. That was when I realized that something was not right.

While at an appointment for an ear infection I asked my doctor to look at my feet. It took him less than thirty seconds to tell me it was plantar warts. I was so embarrassed. They did the first treatment that day in the office. The nurse shaved off some of the skin with a scalpel and then proceeded to freeze off each wart. I won't sugar coat it. It was not the most pleasant thing I have ever done.

I was told that I would have to come back in a month for another treatment and then a month after that for one more. She even said that I might need another one after that. She also said that they couldn't guarantee that the warts would even go away completely. I asked if I could try some of the over the counter treatments at home in between appointments. She said that I would not do any harm, but that she didn't think I would see too much in the way of results.

That day on the way home I stopped by the local drug store and headed over to food care section. I had intended to get the at home freezing wart remover, but after reading some reviews and the complicated instructions I decided that the medicated pads would most likely work better for me. I went with the drug store brand because it was $2 cheaper than the name brand. I figured I could always switch if I didn't see results.

The directions were simple enough and I put on the first set the next week. (I wanted to wait so that I didn't do more harm than good after the appointment with my doctor.) I soaked my feet in rather warm water for about five minutes and then used a little salt scrub to exfoliate the area. I then let my feet dry completely. I didn't cut any of the medicated pads and just put them right onto my feet. I then covered them with the giant discs that were supposed to make them comfortable when walking. I kept them on for one full day. The directions said they should stay on for two days, but they came off in the shower. So I reapplied. This time I cut the medicated pads to fit each wart and only used the giant discus on the bottom of my feet and used band aides to cover the ones on my toes.

I did this for about a week. I then ran out of supplies. I hadn't seen any results so I wasn't too keen on buying another box right away. I waited a few days and when I was about ready to call to schedule my next appointment with my doctor I noticed that the warts were falling off. They were just coming right off my foot. It was gross, but I didn't see any of the black dots under the skin sloughing off so I knew that I had gotten the wart. After a couple of days of letting the skin fall off on its own my feet were clear. It was amazing!

This was not completely pain free. I work jobs that require me to be on my feet at all times. Standing while using the medicated pads was uncomfortable. It was to the point where I couldn't function, but I would rather not feel that again. I did not notice any discomfort when I was relaxing or sleeping, so I am fairly certain that they only hurt because I was standing.

When the skin was peeling off I t was a little uncomfortable. The sensation of things between the toes was not something I would like to relive. It felt like having a band aide that was falling off but you couldn't take it off.

Overall I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly the product worked. Several of the reviews that I had read said that it could take up to two months of at home treatment to see results and I completely removed all of my warts in less than a week.

My conclusion is that if you know for certain that what you, or your child has is a plantar wart, then I would try the at home treatment first. I would be careful to follow the directions, they are there for a reason after all. If you don't see results after going through the box, or the recommended time for treatment, then I would make an appointment to see the doctor. However, I would see a doctor if the warts are causing extreme discomfort or are disrupting daily activities.