The sheer variety of skin concerns that can affect your body means that it’s easy for you to misdiagnose a problem. It’s even more common to overlook something when it happens on an out-of-the-way place like your foot.
Frisco plantar wart patients who see Dr. Rachel Verville often regret making the assumption that their discomfort is from a callous. Since a callous and a plantar wart call for different types of treatment, they only later understand that they were delaying the healing process. Here are a few ways to know which issue you have and how to treat it.
Callous vs. Plantar Wart
A callous is a patch of thickened or hardened skin. It can appear on your foot and elsewhere on your body. Typically, a callous is the result of ongoing pressure and friction; your foot reacts to these conditions and builds additional skin to protect itself. Improper shoes, socks, or overuse can all lead to a callous.
Dr. Verville diagnoses Frisco plantar wart patients based on the symptoms a patient experiences and the appearance of the wart. A plantar wart may cause discomfort any time there is friction. It can feel firm or bumpy and may be spotted with dark areas. Unlike a callous, a plantar wart is caused by a virus.
Treatment for Frisco Plantar Wart Patients and Callouses
The virus that leads to a plantar wart can spread to adjacent areas of the foot, creating more lesions that can combine into a single, larger wart. Dr. Verville may recommend something as simple as new footwear (to give the virus time to subside). She may also prescribe medication and custom orthotics.
Callous treatment often follows the same path. Dr. Verville may also advise surgical removal in more severe cases. As with surgery for other issues, such as Frisco hammertoes or a foot fracture, procedures take place under experienced medical care at an accredited outpatient center and with a board-certified anesthesiologist.
How Do I Know for Sure What Is on My Foot?
Even with this information, there’s an “X” factor that can prevent you from making the right diagnosis on your own: a callous can often form on top of a plantar wart. This may occur when a patient has already begun to develop a plantar wart and friction creates the callous on top. It may also happen if the plantar wart virus contacts an area adjacent to an existing callous.
The way to find out what’s really going on with your foot is to schedule an appointment with an experienced podiatrist. Dr. Verville conducts a thorough examination of each patient, works to identify the root cause, and provides treatment suited to the patient’s needs.
Unsure if you have a callous or a plantar wart? Call our Frisco offices at (214) 385-8822 or schedule an appointment on our website.
