Use of punch in the treatment of plantar warts: A study of 250 cases

Abstract

Background: Plantar wart is a frustrating infection for both patients and clinicians that can significantly cause embarrassment, negative gauging by others, and vexation due to persistence and/or recurrence of warts, affecting a patient's quality of life. Materials and Methods: A prospective observational study from April 2020 to March 2021 was conducted in an Indian tertiary care center on 250 patients aged between 15 and 40 years. Punch excision of solitary to multiple plantar warts was carried out with a 5-mm punch. Results: A total of 342 plantar warts were punch excised in 250 cases with 162 males and 88 females. 214 (85%) patients had a complete cure over 10 days of treatment. Eleven (5%) patients developed local secondary bacterial infections managed with oral and topical antibiotics. Complete healing was achieved in all over 2–4 weeks without any scarring. There was no recurrence among 225 cases over the follow-up period of 3 months, while 25 (10%) were lost to follow-up. Conclusion: Use of punch excision for plantar warts is a simple, affordable, and quick outpatient department procedure, requiring no suturing even with an excision size of 5 mm. It needs minimum postprocedural care and heals without scarring. This methodology of management of plantar wart highlights it as a preferable procedure in primary care centers or resource-poor settings that requires less expertise.

Keywords

• excision
• plantar warts
• punch