My daughter had plantar warts that became quite painful to
walk on. We tried applying salicylic acid wart removal liquid
(Wart-Off) once per day, but the warts just got worse. So we went to
see our family dermatologist, who is a professor at a major teaching
hospital. He said that these types of warts are difficult to treat, but
the best course was to use the method described here. We tried it, and
it worked surprisingly well.
This treatment requires patience. It may take two to three weeks before
you see positive results. Don't get discouraged if not much happens in
the first one or two weeks.
Note: This information is not intended to replace the advice of a
physician. Although the treatment is very effective, it is not
guaranteed to work in every case. If you are not sure of whether you
have plantar warts, or if you are not sure if this treatment is right
for you, consult a physician first. If you experience pain or
discomfort as a result of the treatment, stop the treatment and consult
a physician. This treatment is for plantar warts on the soles of the
feet only. Do not attempt this treatment if you are diabetic or have
poor blood circulation, or if the skin is infected or reddened.
Treatment Procedure
Get one or two Mediplast 40% Salicylic Acid plasters
(2-by-3-inch medicated pads) from your local pharmacy, about $2 each.
Call first to make sure they have them in stock. You might need to
special-order this item. They are also available from Amazon.com.
Also get one roll of athletic tape
from a sporting goods store or drug store, about $4.
- Cut a piece of the plaster to the size and shape of the
plantar wart of your foot. Peel off the paper backing.
- Your feet should be clean and dry. Apply the sticky side of
the plaster to your wart. If you have many warts, just treat the few
largest or most troublesome ones.
- Cover the plasters with a strip of tape. Make the ends of
the tape go around the sides and on top of your foot. Press firmly to
make the tape stick on well.
- Apply another strip of tape on top of your foot, covering
the ends of the first strip of tape. Now the two pieces of tape form a
loop around your foot that will not come off easily.
- Keep the plaster on for five to seven days (even though the
Mediplast instructions say two days). It is OK to bathe and get the
tape wet. If the tape starts coming off, trim away the loose edges and
apply more tape around your foot to keep the original tape on.
Note: If the wart is small, you can try using just a square of athletic
tape or a piece of adhesive cut from a Band-Aid strip over the wart,
without wrapping all the way around the foot. It's fine as long as it
stays on for five to seven days. If the tape starts coming off, trim away the loose edges and
apply more tape.
- After five to seven days, remove the tape and plaster. The
treated
area will appear white, probably with some loose dead skin. Soak your
feet in warm water for 5 to 10 minutes. Using a nail clipper, file, or
coarse sandpaper, remove as much loose dead skin as you comfortably
can. It is not necessary to get every bit of dead skin off. Wash your
feet and allow them to dry thoroughly.
- Repeat Steps 1 through 6 until the warts are gone.
With each treatment, the warts get a little bit thinner, and after a
few weeks, smaller and smaller. In my daughter's case, the warts were
essentially gone after about eight treatments, over the course of two
months. We stopped the treatment, and the warts continued to clear up
and did not come back.
Plantar warts are caused by a virus. Our doctor said that the immune
system was failing to recognize the virus, allowing the warts to spread
over the sole of the foot. The treatment helps the immune system
recognize the virus, causing it to attack the virus. Even the warts not
being treated with the Mediplast plaster might start to go away.
You can find similar instructions at the San
Francisco State University Student Health Service.
Where to Get the Supplies
The only things you need to buy are the Mediplast plasters and some
athletic tape. The Mediplast plaster is a 2-by-3-inch medicated rubber
sheet with a sticky side covered by a paper backing. The active
ingredient is salicylic acid. You might find similar treatment
materials at your local pharmacy such as Dr. Scholl's Clear Away
Salicylic Acid Wart Remover, which might work just as well, but I
haven't tried it. (If you try it, please let me know how it turned out.) Drip-on salicylic acid treatments are not as
effective because the liquid doesn't stay in contact with the wart long
enough.
Athletic tape is a sticky cloth tape that athletes use to wrap their
knees, wrists, and other joints.
I tried CVS and Walgreens, but neither store had Mediplast plasters in
stock. Both offered to special-order it. I ordered it at Walgreens, and
it arrived the next day. Unfortunately, I had to buy a whole box of 25.
Typically, just one or two pads is enough for the full course of
treatment. You can get that quantity at Amazon.com or eBay.
Athletic tape is available at sporting goods stores and drug stores. I
got mine at Walgreens, the same place where I got the Mediplast
plasters. You can also get athletic tape from Amazon.com,
although you might be able to save money by getting it at your local
sporting goods store or drug store.
"Duct Tape Only" Treatment
One suggested treatment consists of covering the plantar warts with
duct tape, without any medication. According to a study that was done,
this treatment worked better than freezing the warts with liquid
nitrogen.
Critics say that the study was flawed. Since it was troublesome to keep
messy duct tape on their feet, those who saw no benefit from it tended
to give up and drop out of the study, which skewed the results. Duct
tape is not meant to be used on human skin, and the safety of the
chemicals used has not been evaluated. Using Mediplast plaster pads and
athletic tape is safer and more likely to give good results.
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Reader Results
If you try the treatment, please
let me know whether it worked. If you
can, take some photos of your foot before, during, and after the
treatment. How long did it take to get rid of the warts? If the
treatment was not successful, what happened? Did you try any other
remedies or treatments, and if so, what happened? I'll publish the
results here.
- Tim S: worked great with the mediplast and nexcare 1 inch
absolute waterproof tape. one smaller area was treated with dr scholls
clear away medicated disks. i was amazed how quickly the treatment
worked, in my case just three weeks. used a pumice stone for skin
removal. thanks for the webpage, it saved me a lot of trouble and
expense!
- Lisa W: Thank you soo much for your helpful website! It
worked in 3 weeks, and I've been to the podiatrist many times and had
many treatments over the years. One particularly painful plantar wart
just lifted out with the changing of the tape. Ahhh, relief. We don't
have insurance, so you saved us lots of money.
- Rocco from the US: I just wanted to thank you for your
excellent advice on using the Curad Mediplasts treatment for plantar
warts. After suffering with ugly and painful warts on both of my heels
for 'years' I was at my wits end. Even the foot doctor was not
effectively treating them. Treatments where becoming very painful and
expensive. I found your website and decided to order an entire box of
Mediplasts. I have been using the Mediplasts religiously for just about
two months now and I am finally seeing some very positive results! I am
almost certain that within 3-4 more weeks of this treatment that I will
have my smooth wart free heels again. The biggest and deepest wart on
my left heel was about one inch in diameter, now it's almost gone!
Thank's again for your help!
- Edie from Florida: I ordered the Curad pads and the sports
tape from Amazon. Together they were under $10. While I waited for them
to arrive, I used drawing salve (Ichthammol Ointment 20%) for several
days. I applied it twice a day and put a bandage over it. I got my
supplies and started using them on a Saturday. Tuesday I changed them
out. The following Saturday, I pulled off the dressing and the wart
came off with it. It only took a week!
  Ben
W from overseas: It worked. Took about 3 weeks. As I'm overseas so the
brand of salicylic acid pads you mention wasn't available but found
equivalent. Of note, prior to this treatment I had cut out the wart and
filed clean the skin with a pumice stone. (The wart was on my heel.)
This seemed to work and it looked gone. But then it came back.
Then I tried the salicylic pads. It's advertised as for use with "corns"
-- it's 30% salicylic acid.
Sticky like a bandaid with dab of product at center. Made in Korea. It
was a wet ugly mess for a while there. Looked like I took a bullet in
the heel. I wasn't sure when to stop. But did stop after it appeared
pads weren't doing anything more, weren't burning in much anymore.
Figured that if came back I'd treat again. But then healed up nicely.
Sorry didn't photo before and during -- wasn't sure it would work. But
have attached after photo. The tiny white spot is what's left now --
been about month since removed pad. Foot print lines are back.Thanks
very much for posting remedy. It's really important and very cost
effective. Good public service.
- Dayton D from Illinois: I had a very painful plantars wart and
learned of the duct tape method on the internet. Tried it for 3 months.
Used pumice and other sanding methods before applying fresh duct tape
each day. Last visit to the Dermatologist and wart was completely
removed. Dermatologist recommended mediplast if it returns but I am very
satisfied with removal results using grey duct tape.
Also see Curad
Mediplast Customer Reviews at Amazon.com.
Reminder: Do not attempt a
salicylic acid treatment (such as Mediplast)
if you have diabetes or poor circulation. If you have pain or
discomfort, stop the treatment and consult a physician.
You can contact me at the Dog Daze Guest Book link below. |
Update: I
found several products at my local Walgreens store that have the same
active ingredient as Mediplast: 40% salicylic acid in a rubbery solid
that you tape to the wart and leave in contact with the wart for an
extended period. I expect all of these products to work as well as
Mediplast: Dr. Scholl's Clear Away,
Compound W,
Walgreens Clear Wart Removers, and similar products. 
