How to get rid of plantar warts?

These are the following effective methods how to get rid of warts:

1.) Try salicylic acid and duct tape. Salicylic acid is the active ingredient in most over-the-counter wart remedies such as Compound W, Ocusal, and WartStick.

2.) Try cryotherapy. While not as powerful as a doctor's liquid nitrogen treatment, cryotherapy products such as Compound W Freeze Off or Dr. Scholl's Freeze Away Wart Remover can be purchased over the counter, without a prescription. Still, they've been know to be effective, if somewhat more painful than a doctor's methods.

3.) Use apple cider vinegar. This has had some success, as the mild acid helps dissolve the wart.

4.) Use podophyllum. This ointment is a plant extract that goes by many names, including American mandrake, Himalayan mayapple, and Devil's apple. It may work by killing the infected skin cells, but it's toxic, so to be avoided by pregnant or nursing mothers.


5.) Use cantharidin. This is similar to the salicylic method above, only with the addition of cantharidin, which is a substance extracted from a blister beetle. A mixture of salicylic acid and cantharidin is applied to the wart, and covered with a bandage. In about a week, the doctor will remove the dead part of the wart. This method also involves a bit of pain from the blister.

6.) Try immunotherapy. For really stubborn warts, your physician may try immunotherapy, or getting your body's immune defenses assigned to attacking your wart. Injecting interferon into the wart triggers an immune system response that will "reject" the wart. You may experience flu-like systems for a few hours after treatment. Injecting an antigen (commonly, mumps antigens) will similarly trigger an immune response that will kill the wart.

7.) Use imiquimod. This is a prescription cream that triggers your body to release proteins (cytokines) that will attack HPV. Imiquimod can cause severe inflammation and tissue damage near the wart, and should be discontinued if that occurs.

8.) Try laser treatments. These precisely-targeted lasers will cauterize the capillaries carrying blood to the wart, starving it and causing it to die. It can be painful and even scarring, but has a good chance of destroying the wart.