hard knots on foot

I stepped on a thumbtack about 6 months ago and now I've got a hardened knot around where the tack went in. Also I've got about 6 more of these all over the bottom of that same foot. What do you think it is?

ANSWER

Hi,

Without having the luxury of actually examining you I cannot be 100 percent sure, but what I have seen over the years in many people is that when there is trauma to the bottom of the foot such as stepping on a thumb tack very often, due to the opening that is created, a wart develops.
The reason I am "guessing" that these are warts is because they are spreading which is typical of warts.
Other potential conditions like a granuloma or possibly a sterile abscess will not spread, so that leaves warts as the most likely candidate.
You potentially have 2 problems here if they are warts. The first is the possibility of pain; your may or may not hurt. Generally, the location of the wart will determine whether or not there will be pain.
Secondly, they are obviously spreading. In general, I tell patients that one wart that does not hurt, can usually be left alone. However, once they start to spread, they need to be treated. In a worst case scenario you could end up with hundreds of warts on your foot and I will attest to the fact that can happen as I have seen it numerous times.
Obviously a few warts are relatively easy to treat. Hundreds of warts become a totally different situation. Not only are they difficult to treat but they can become disabling.
So, if I can offer you any good advice, that would be to consult a foot specialist in your area, get an accurate diagnosis and if they are warts, start on a treatment regimen.

Marc Mitnick DPM
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