A plantar wart (also known as "Verruca plantaris") is a wart caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV) occurring on the sole (Latin planta) or toes of the foot. (HPV infections in other locations are not plantar; see human papillomavirus.) Plantar warts are usually self-limiting, but treatment is generally recommended to lessen symptoms (which may include pain), decrease duration, and reduce transmission.
Plantar warts are almost unknown in habitually barefoot cultures and people, this is because walking barefoot for extended periods of time strengthens the skin and keeps it dry and uncompromised as well as wearing off the virus through friction on the soles of the feet, preventing infection. While infection occurs in an estimated 7–10% of the US population, plantar warts tend to affect only 0.29% of people who have never worn shoes.
Read more about Plantar Wart: Cause, Diagnosis, Prevention, Treatment
Famous quotes containing the word wart:
“That which shows God in me, fortifies me. That which shows God out of me, makes me a wart and a wen.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)