It’s common for the undersides of your feet to suffer from warts. However, there are other types of growths that can affect this area. Another possible cause is a porokeratoma (plural: porokeratoses), which is a type of hard callus that is easy to mistake for a wart. It’s sometimes known as a “seed corn” because of its appearance. A podiatrist will be able to check that your heel pain is being caused by this condition, rather than by warts.
Identifying a porokeratoma
- • A porokeratoma will usually feel hard and smooth, without the roughness of a wart.
- • Most of the time, it is quite small, no larger than a sesame seed. Warts are often larger.
- • The pain can be unpleasant, feeling as though you have a splinter caught in your heel.
What causes porokeratoses is still not completely understood, but in some cases they may be caused by blocked sweat glands. Since you have over a quarter of a million of these glands under each foot, it’s very easy for some of them to be blocked by hard tissue. Other types may result from over-exposure of your feet to the sun.
Things that can make a porokeratoma feel worse
- • Wearing hard shoes with thin, unpadded heels is likely to be painful.
- • Spending a lot of time barefoot can have the same effect.
- • If your heels don’t have much natural padding, this can also make things worse.
You are not at risk from porokeratoses, and they will not spread to other areas of your body. Even so, it’s important to see a podiatrist, so you can be sure that the diagnosis is correct and so you can have the growths removed to take away the pain. Sometimes, the porokeratoma can simply be cut or scraped away – this is not usually painful. Alternatively, you may have a substance placed on it that will make it burst harmlessly, like a blister.