Plantar wart signs and symptoms include:
- A small, fleshy, rough, grainy growth (lesion) on the bottom of your foot
- Hard, thickened skin (callus) over a well-defined "spot" on the skin, where a wart has grown inward
- Black pinpoints, which are commonly called wart seeds but are actually small, clotted blood vessels
- A lesion that interrupts the normal lines and ridges in the skin of your foot
- Pain or tenderness when walking or standing
When to see a doctor
See your doctor for the lesion on your foot if:
May 22, 2014
- The lesion is painful or changes in appearance or color
- You've tried treating the wart, but it persists, multiplies or recurs
- Your discomfort interferes with activities
- You also have diabetes or poor sensation in your feet — in which case, you'll need treatment supervised by a doctor
- You also have a weakened immune system because of immune-suppressing drugs, HIV/AIDS or other immune system disorders
- You aren't sure whether the lesion is a wart
- Goldstein BG, et al. Cutaneous warts. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed Jan. 15, 2014.
- Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2014: 5 Books in 1. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2014. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed Jan. 15, 2014.
- Bope ET, et al. Conn's Current Therapy. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2013. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed Jan. 15, 2014.
- Landis MN, et al. Recalcitrant plantar warts treated with recombinant quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. 2012;67:e73.
- Your guide to diabetes: Type 1 and type 2. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/type1and2/care.aspx. Accessed Jan. 15, 2014.
- Kwok CS, et al. Topical treatments for cutaneous warts. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD001781.pub3/abstract. Accessed Jan. 15, 2014.
- AskMayoExpert. Warts (adult and pediatric). Rochester, Minn.: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research; 2013.
- Warts. American Academy of Dermatology. http://www.aad.org/dermatology-a-to-z/diseases-and-treatments/u---w/warts. Accessed Jan. 15, 2014.
- Simonart T, et al. Systemic treatments for cutaneous warts: A Systematic review. Journal of Dermatological Treatment. 2012;23:72.
- Habif TP. Clinical Dermatology: A Color Guide to Diagnosis and Therapy. 5th ed. Edinburgh, U.K.; New York, N.Y.: Mosby Elsevier; 2010. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed Jan. 15, 2014.
- Some wart removers are flammable. U.S. Food and Drug Administration consumer update. http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates/ucm381429.htm?source=govdelivery&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery. Accessed Jan. 17, 2014.