What is the difference between a callus and a plantar wart?

Calluses are patches of thickened skin caused by excessive friction. Plantar warts are skin growths caused by a strain of the human papillomavirus. Plantar warts tend to bleed when if the skin is scraped; calluses do not.

Calluses are treated by trimming the dead skin, applying moisturizing cream or adjusting footwear to release pressure in the affected area. Once the main cause is corrected, calluses gradually disappear.

Remedies for plantar warts include the application of duct tape to the affected area, use of an over-the-counter treatment and having them 'frozen off' by a physician. Efforts to remove the sometimes painful warts are not always fast or successful, and the wart may reappear.