Verrucae
Verrucas are warts on the soles of the feet – often found on the heel or ball of the foot. They are caused by a virus (human papillomavirus or HPV) and range in size from approximately 1mm to 10mm. They can appear in pairs or groups and are flat, have a cauliflower type appearance with rough areas of skin – sometimes with a cluster of black dots at their centre. These dots are blood vessels that the virus uses to survive. Due to these blood vessels, a verruca is very likely to bleed slightly if some of the overlying skin is removed with a scalpel which can also make it easy to identify
Verrucas (like warts) are contagious but the risk of passing them onto others is low. The skin is most vulnerable when damaged, in contact with rough surfaces or if it's wet, for example in swimming pools and changing rooms. Verrucae are rarely painful but can be diagnosed by pinching it rather than pushing it. A corn will hurt when you push it.
Verrucas will often disappear without treatment within a year of appearing. They are though notoriously difficult to get rid of. At Southfields Footcare, we use a number of different acids to treat the virus. The main acid used is Salicylic acid. Once this applied to the Verucca it has to be kept totally dry for three days with very positive results.
Other treatments include cryotherapy (freezing) which is usually delivered as a spray that freezes the tissue and kills the virus inside.
Southfields Footcare is pleased to announce that it is one of the first clinics in South West London to offer Swift, a pioneering new microwave therapy for skin that has been licensed for the general treatment of skin lesions such as verrucas and warts in Podiatry and Dermatology. It is the new alternative to cryotherapy, acids and laser therapy. Using a special probe it is applied to the skin for a few seconds to treat the affected tissue with a precise, highly controlled energy dose which quickly destroys infected tissue. In just seconds the treatment is complete, leaving the body to absorb and replace the treated tissue.
If you are interested in using Swift, please call us on 020 8870 3742 or email info@southfieldsfootcare.co.uk to discuss before making an appointment.
