TREATMENT OF COMPLICATIONS OF PLANTAR WARTS

THE LOWLY plantar wart, although a very small lesion, may cause great disability. Most plantar warts respond well to simple forms of treatment, but a multiplicity of methods of therapy indicates no single better mode. Electrocoagulation,¹ chemicals,² freezing,³ podophyllin,⁴ and irradiation⁵ have all produced some good results. Claims of "cures" as high as 95% are made for various treatments, but little is written about the poor results of specific types of therapy. Surgical excision has few advocates because of the resultant painful scars and calluses. Many persons are insensitive to radiotherapy,⁶ and the many poor results of such repeated or overenthusiastic treatment are seen by every service for reconstructive surgery.⁷ In general, repeated treatments have caused deep fibrosis, which is the fundamental pathologic cause of intractable ulceration with its attendant pain. Crippling orthopedic imbalances of years' standing attest the pain and psychological disturbances