Wednesday, July 25, 2012

What are Hammertoes? Dr. Peter Wishnie, a podiatrist in Hillsborough and Piscataway, NJ explains what is hammertoes and how they are treated in our office. Hammertoe surgery is commonly used to treat hammertoes, however, there are plenty of conservative treatments that can be utilized first. Hammertoe splints and shoes are common and less invasive.


Saturday, November 22, 2008

Is My House Infected With Warts?

Most warts are harmless and are commonly found on children and teenagers. Warts are caused by a very common virus that invades the skin though a small visible or invisible abrasion. A lot of people confuse warts with a corn or callous. The difference is that warts have tiny red-brown spots in the center where callouses do not.

Some people tend to get warts more easily than others. We are all a little different on how our immune system recognizes such nasty invaders, thus some people will never get a wart from the locker room no matter what and others will get warts every football season.
If your child has warts, your house does not turn into a wart heaven, but proper precautions should be made. Since everyone is susceptible to warts there is a chance that more family members will get infected. Try not to walk around barefoot and clean bathtubs and floors often.

What do you do if your child gets a wart? Most warts will subside over time. If they are painful or begin to be multiply or spread on the foot, see your podiatric physician. There is a variety of treatments. Just as we all recognize viruses a little differently, we also respond to treatments a little differently. What works with one individual does not always work on the next. The best treatment for a particular individual is discovered through trial and error.

If the wart is not painful and you are not going to seek treatment, avoid picking or touching it. This may aggrevate it and causes it to get bigger or spread to other parts of your body.
If you or your child continuously gets warts, make sure to avoid walking barefoot. Change socks and shoes daily. Keep feet clean and dry, and pay attention to any changes that occur on your feet. If your child has a wart, you should spray his shoes with Lysol and clean the bath tub with Lysol or scrub it with Comet. Most of the time warts do not need to be removed. Chemical treatment is usually effective. Other treatments include laser removal, cryotherapy (freezing) and even oral medication.

Self treatment of warts is not advised because of the risk of the wart spreading and improper use of over the counter treatments. If you feel you or your child needs treatment for warts, contact a trained physician, such as a podiatrist, to address your health concern.
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Dr. Peter Wishnie is a podiatrist who specializes in foot and ankle surgery. He is the senior partner at Family Foot & Ankle specialists located in Piscataway and Hillsborough,NJ. Their goals are to educate the public on the care of their feet and ankles and to get them functioning as quickly as possible. They are dedicated to foot and ankle health. For more foot health tips , get a Free copy of their book, “Got Feet?" by visiting their website: http://www.stopfootpainfast.