Verruca: what to do!

Just found a small wart on the sole of my foot, due to being slightly sore after walking a bit today.  Grrrrrrr...  It's tiny right now, and not right on one of the balls of my feet, but obviously a bit of a problem with a week to go!

Should I get something from the chemist and zap it with everything I can muster? (If so, suggestions welcome as it's years since I've had one).  Or is that going to leave me with a worse sore spot in a week than the thing itself?

Any sugestions appreciated!

Comments

  • Tea tree oil - dab it on daily and may well have gone by next weekend.

    Nope, I'd not have believed it either, but went to my pharmacy after years of trying to remove the b*ggers from off-springs' feet - they recommended it and the results were visible immediately.

    No idea how or why it works (anti-septic of some kind) don't really care either, just grateful that it does!

    Good luck  -  and for next weekend's little jaunt image

  • Go to www.patient.co.uk and search for "verruca". There's an excellent leaflet on there that outlines the treatment possibilities.

    It's probably worth softening it with some paint stuff and then filing it a little bit, but not a lot, else you'll make it more sore. Just file it enough so that it stops hurting when you're walking on it - the pain's just caused by the build-up of hard skin that the wart virus makes you produce.

  • Thanks for the tips.  Looks like the 'conventional' means are all long term and will possibly leave me with more of a problem next week, so I'll be trying the tea trea.  Unless anyone else has an idea!

    As a kid I had great success dabbing on Greater Celandine juice (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chelidonium).  Unfortunately don't know anywhere handy that it grows!

  • Good luck with it Rowan, it's the only thing that worked for my two (and their feet were covered in them, including all difficult to reach places, by nails, in between toes).

    I used to put the stuff onto a cotton wool bud, apply every night and after a week, they had disappeared - and they didn't hurt at all.

    Honestly, Guvimage.

    Never thought I'd see the day

  • M.ister WM.ister W ✭✭✭

    Nothing gets rid of veruccas except your own immune system.  All of the treatments attempt to aggravate your immune system until it recognises that the verucca is there and deals with it.  However, it's pretty much pot luck if a treatment works or not.  I tried all sorts of things and nothing worked but one day they just disappeared.

       

    The problem, as you've found, is that they can hurt if they're on the sole of your foot so you need to soften them and remove any dead skin to make them less painful.  Take BB's advice to scrub off the dead skin with a foot file or pumice stone.  Soaking your feet in warm water before your scrub should help.

  • Padding (from Boots) stuck to your foot or in your shoe with a hole cut out will remove pain due to pressure, and make the verrucca eventually stick out more, ready to be abraded.

    In an emergency - if it hurts just before the race, I found a tiny dab of ibuprofen gel made racing possible (wouldn't normally, filthy stuff!)

  • My chiropodist recommended sticking a small piece of banana skin to the verucca using duct tape.  Apparantly something in the banana helps kill them off and combining this covering will get rid of it.  I tried it on my son and it cleared up in a week.  Filed it down with a foot file in the evening.  We were very gentle - he wasn't up for any pain.

     Good luck!

  • Lol, so looks like I'm going to be walking round on padding soaked in tea trea and a banana skin, all held on with duct tape.  Should make for an interesting sight when I visit expo...

    Will also be doing very careful paring down next weekend I should think...

  • M.ister W wrote (see)

    Nothing gets rid of veruccas except your own immune system.  All of the treatments attempt to aggravate your immune system until it recognises that the verucca is there and deals with it.

    Well MY immune system is sh*t then because I have a MAHOOSIVE one right in the middle of the ball of my foot and it fecking hurts a LOT. I've had it ages and its going nowhere.image
  • Evening all.image Heard on radio 4 tonite at about 4.50 pm dont know what programme,putting raw garlic on cured a verucca.
  • Raw garlic? REALLY???? image

    Did it pong so much the verruca thought "sod that - I'm orf??"image

  • Don't get near me when I have a cough then: I eat raw garlic sandwhiches for chest infections!
  • I bet you don't get kissed much when you do......image
  • LB - I had one on the ball of my left foot for bloomin' yonks (probably about eight to nine years I think). Eventually got rid of it last year.

    Mr W is absolutely right about the immune system thing. All these "cures" probably have little basis, other than they were in the right place at the right time, as it were...

  • It feels like I've got grit in my shoe permanently! image

    And occasionally I paint it with Salicylic but it seems to have no effect....image

    I guess my immune system is stoopid..image

  • Make sure you paint it, then soak and file it the next day, then do it all again...

    All the salicylic acid does is help break down the callous that's formed, and hopefully subsequently stimulate the immune response...but if it's a big old thick wart, that's going to take a while image

  • image You make it sound such an attractive feature!
  • Well whatever it was the with tea tree oil, they disappeared and have not reappered since - and that was over 18 months ago.  They also had revolting problems with other fungal infections (won't go into details, too early in the morning, but boys + sweaty feet + trainers etcimage) and they've all gone too - if it hadn't happened to my own, then I wouldn't have believed it.

    Basil Brush Mk II wrote (see)

    All the salicylic acid does is help break down the callous that's formed, and hopefully subsequently stimulate the immune response...but if it's a big old thick wart, that's going to take a while image

    Hmm, wonder if that approach works with people, I know  big, thick old wart that I wish would disappearimage

    Edited for PS

    PS I don't mean anyone from the forum, of courseimage

  • Tea trea has anti viral and anti fungal properties, so it could well work.  You'd need a full scale trial with lots of people to be absolutely sure of course, but I'm hoping.
  • Yep, that's what my pharmacist said, I was just sceptical as all other OTC remedies had failed, I doubted that it would be enough, but it was.  Keep a bottle all the time for any other needs - works for lots of things.

    Hope you get it sorted out - I use the felt system for blisters (learnt long ago from badly fitting ski boots) but it does make your foot feel different.  Ok for short-term wear, but might cause you problems next week if you haven't done it before.

  • M.ister WM.ister W ✭✭✭
    LB, it's unlikely there's anything wrong with your immune system.  It just doesn't think the verucca is a problem so it hasn't bothered to deal with it.  I had one for years before it suddenly disappeared, pretty much overnight.
  • I should have a word with my immune system then Mister W because I think its a problem! It bloody hurts.....image
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