Background and purpose: Iontophoretic sodium salicylate treatment of plantar warts was studied.
Subjects: Twenty patients with 104 plantar verrucae were studied.
Methods: Two percent sodium salicylate solution was administered iontophoretically (22.5 mA-minute/electrode, 3 treatments at 6- to 9-day intervals). Results. Nineteen subjects were followed. Verrucae area declined in 15 subjects (78.9%) and increased in 2 subjects (10.5%). One subject (5.3%) no longer had verrucae, and 1 subject (5.3%) exhibited no change. Overall, the number of verrucae and total area decreased. Four of 6 subjects (66.6%) with initial complaints of load-bearing pain reported diminished pain following treatment. Two subjects whose verrucae's size increased reported an increase in pain at the end of the study.
Discussion and conclusion: Sodium salicylate iontophoresis appeared to compare favorably with other office-based interventions in diminishing the size of plantar warts and their associated pain. Application of iontophoresis to weight-bearing surfaces in some subjects appeared to decrease the pain and scarring associated with freezing and electrocautery and the fixation problems associated with medicated patches.