Warts and Plantar Warts

Warts occur in a variety of shapes and sizes. A wart may appear as a bump with a rough surface, or it may be flat and smooth. Tiny blood vessels (capillaries) grow into the core of the wart to supply it with blood. In both common and plantar warts, these capillaries may appear as dark dots (seeds) in the wart's center.

• Reference Common warts Opens New Window Reference Opens New Window usually appear singly or in groups on the hands, although they may grow on any part of the body. They usually are rough, gray-brown, dome-shaped growths.
• Reference Plantar warts Opens New Window Reference Opens New Window can develop on any part of the foot. As the callus and wart get larger, walking can become painful, much like walking with a pebble in your shoe. When pressure from standing or walking pushes a plantar wart beneath the skin's surface, a layer of thick, tough skin similar to a Reference callus Opens New Window develops over it. Sometimes dark specks are visible beneath the surface of the wart.
• Reference Flat warts Opens New Window Reference Opens New Window are usually found on the face, arms, or legs. They are small (usually smaller than the eraser on the end of a pencil). There are usually several in one area. They have flat tops and can be pink, light brown, or light yellow. Flat warts are often spread by shaving.
• Reference Filiform warts Opens New Window Reference Opens New Window, a kind of flat wart, can grow around the mouth, nose, and beard area. The surface of this type of wart has many flesh-colored, finger-shaped growths.
• Reference Periungual warts Opens New Window Reference Opens New Window are found under and around the toenails and fingernails. They appear as rough, irregular bumps.

Warts cover the lines and creases in the skin—this is one way to tell a wart from other skin conditions, such as skin tags or moles.

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