Corns

What are corns?

Corns, also referred to as clavi, are painful hypertrophy of skin, forming a skin swelling, that develop in response to excess pressure or friction on the bony prominences of the feet and toes. Foot Skin developed corns due to chronic or intermittent pressure and friction, excessive skin thickening, and thick skin cocoon formation. After the formation of corns, there are pyramidal or eye-shaped raised skin swelling. Corns mostly grow in the feet and toes.

Cause

Corns are caused by pressure from unyielding structures.  Abnormal mechanical stress may be intrinsic or extrinsic.  Extrinsic factors include poorly fitting footwear and heavy activity (athletics). Intrinsic factors include foot deformities (hammer toe, bunion); abnormal foot mechanics (acquired or hereditary); and peripheral neuropathy.

Symptoms

When walking or wearing shoes, patients will feel pain over the corns .

Treatment

Consider the following treatments:

• Chemical Therapy
  Applying caustic chemicals over the skin lesion causes superficial tissue necrosis. The depth and width of the chemical induced tissue necrosis need careful control.  Please consult your doctor for advice.
• Cryotherapy
  Using liquid nitrogen spray over the skin lesion induces frostbite and subsequent superficial tissue necrosis.  The depth and width of the cryotherapy induced tissue necrosis need careful control.  It usually takes several treatment sessions to cure.  Please consult your doctor for advice.
• Laser surgical therapy
  Using carbon dioxide laser to vaporize and destroys the warts. The depth of tissue destruction needs careful control.  Please consult your doctor for advice.
• Surgical excision
  Surgeons use scalpel or electric knife to remove the wart in one piece and close the wound with sutures.  Please consult your doctor for advice.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Do I need to treat the corn in my foot/ toe?
A: If your feels pain when walking, you should consider treatment.

Q: How do I prevent corns?
A:  Avoid tight or too loose shoes.  Wear thick socks.  Correct underlying foot abnormality.

Q: How can I differentiate corns between warts?
A: corns and foot warts biggest difference from the site of infection, characterization and number to distinguish.