If you’ve been dealing with painful, persistent plantar warts, you may be curious about the SWIFT therapy process. This non-invasive plantar wart treatment, available at your Marietta podiatrist’s office, is a safe and effective solution for most patients. By addressing the root cause of your warts, SWIFT can provide lasting wart relief with little fear of recurrence after treatment. But what can you expect from the treatment? Here’s what you need to know.
Swift Therapy Process: Initial Consultation ![a foot with plantar warts]()
When you are seeking plantar wart treatment and come into our podiatry practice, Dr. Alvin Cowans will examine your foot during a thorough evaluation. After confirming your diagnosis, he will determine if you are a good candidate for SWIFT therapy. Luckily, this treatment is safe and non-invasive, so it is appropriate for most patients, including children. Let your Marietta podiatrist know if you are pregnant; have diabetes; have compromised blood flow to your feet; or if you experience tingling or numbness in your feet, as these symptoms may indicate that SWIFT is not the right plantar wart treatment for your needs. SWIFT is also not recommended for patients with pacemakers; metal implants; or patients with compromised immune systems.
What to Do Before Treatment
In the days leading up your scheduled SWIFT session, you should stop using any at-home plantar wart treatments, especially ones that contain salicylic acid. Don’t apply any numbing creams or anesthetic gels to your feet prior to the treatment session.
Inside a SWIFT Therapy Session
On the day of your treatment, you will come to the office and your foot will be cleaned and dried. If a callus is covering the wart, the skin layer may be gently removed prior to the procedure, in order to ensure that the SWIFT probe gains full contact with the targeted treatment area. Then, the session can begin!
Initially, we’ll apply the probe to the wart area—it will begin to emit low-intensity microwave energy. Those waves then heat the water in the cells around the treatment area, breaking them down. When that happens, your body’s immune response is stimulated, forcing it to recognize and start fighting the HPV virus that causes plantar warts to form.
Some patients report mild discomfort during the SWIFT therapy process. But the treatment process lasts mere seconds, and discomfort resolves as soon as it is complete. Best of all, there are no post-procedure care instructions to follow. You won’t have wounds or dressings to worry about, though you may develop some blistering or skin discoloration at the treatment site. Still, after an appointment that lasts between 10 and 30 minutes, depending on the number of warts being treated, you’ll be free to return to your day, with no restrictions on your activity levels.
SWIFT Therapy Process: How Many Treatments are Necessary
Following your initial appointment, you will likely be scheduled for a follow-up appointment about one month later. At that time, your foot will be assessed and treatment will be provided if the wart hasn’t completely resolved. You may still need one more treatment session afterward, and that will also be spaced out by one month. While salicylic acid or cryotherapy treatments only have success rates of about 50% for plantar warts, studies show that this treatment successfully eliminates plantar warts in 84% of patients after a series of three treatments (individuals with large or recalcitrant warts may need additional treatments). Following your final treatment session, you will be scheduled for one more follow-up visit 12 weeks later, to ensure that your immune system has fully responded to the HPV virus and eliminated the wart.
How Do I Know If My SWIFT Treatment Is Working?
In the initial weeks or even months after treatment, you may not notice any changes to the wart appearance. But that’s a normal part of the SWIFT therapy treatment process--it begins working underneath your skin, at the base of the wart. With time, you may start to see black dots appearing in your wart. And that is a sign that the treatment has effectively stimulated your body’s immune response.
How Long Does it Take for Warts to Go Away With SWIFT?
Every patient is different, and the time it takes for your wart to resolve will depend on factors including your age; the type of HPV infection you have; how long you’ve had the wart; as well as the state of your overall health. On average, patients see their warts resolve in 2-3 months. However, it can take anywhere between 6 weeks and 9 months from the conclusion of treatment for your wart to completely resolve.
How Will I Know When My Wart is Completely Killed?
There are several signs that indicate a plantar wart has been completely resolved following the SWIFT therapy treatment process. Look for:
- Skin that feels smooth to the touch, with no rough spots or bumpy patches
- The return of the normal lines of your skin
- The disappearance of any black dots
- The resolution of all pain and discomfort
Ready to say goodbye to painful plantar warts, but not sure about the best treatment options? We’re here to answer your questions and help you find the ideal treatment to safely and effectively resolve your warts. Just call our Marietta podiatrist at 770-727-0614 or follow this link to make an appointment.
