How To Treat Warts

Warts are benign growths on the skin or mucous membranes that cause cosmetic problems as well as pain and discomfort. They are seen on people of all ages but most commonly appear in children and teenagers. The incubation period of a wart is 2 to 9 months following infection with the human papilloma virus (HPV), during which time an excessive proliferation of skin growth slowly develops.

Different varieties of warts can appear on different parts of the body. For example, some wart varieties typically appear on the soles of the feet. Other varieties can affect the face or the hands:
* Flat warts are small, slightly elevated, flat-topped, pink or tan papules, are smoother than the common wart, and have minimal scale. They occur primarily on the face, arms, and legs, and a person can have several, even hundreds of them.
* Plantar warts occur on the soles of the feet, are often thick and callused, grow inward, and can be quite painful and bothersome. Tiny clusters of warts, called mosaic warts, are particularly stubborn and resistant to treatment.
* Ano-genital warts (condyloma acuminata) are flesh to gray in color, grow in mucous membranes, and vary in size from small, shiny papules, to large cauliflowerlike lesions. They can extend internally into the vagina and cervix, the rectal area, and inside the urethra (the tube through which urine is voided from the bladder).

Most of these warts are painless, but there can be itching and burning, and they can progress to more serious disease (e.g., cervical cancer), regress, or remain at their primary growth stage. Anyone who has genital warts should have them examined by a physician.

Most warts can be removed through medications, cryotherapy, or excision. Treatment choices depend on the type and location of the wart. However, the virus that caused a wart will remain in the body even after the wart is removed.

First of all, it's important to know that warts on the skin (such as on the fingers, feet and knees) and warts on the genitals are removed in different ways. Don't try any home remedies or over-the-counter drugs to remove warts on the genital area. The following are some ways to remove common warts from the skin:
* Applying salicylic acid. You can treat warts on places such as the hands, feet or knees by putting salicylic acid on the warts. To get good results, you must apply the acid every day for many weeks. After you take a bath or shower, pat your skin dry lightly with a towel. Then put salicylic acid on your warts. The acid sinks in deeper and works better when it is applied to damp skin. Before you take a shower or a bath the next day, use an emery board or pumice stone to file away the dead surface of the warts.
* Applying cantharidin. With this treatment, the doctor "paints" the chemical onto the wart. Most people don't feel any pain when the chemical is applied to the wart. You'll experience some pain and blistering of the wart in about 3 to 8 hours. After treatment with cantharidin, a bandage is put over the wart. The bandage can be removed after 24 hours.
* Applying liquid nitrogen. Your doctor may use liquid nitrogen to freeze the wart. This treatment is called cryotherapy. Applying liquid nitrogen to the wart causes a little discomfort. To completely remove a wart, liquid nitrogen treatments may be needed every 1 to 3 weeks for a total of 2 to 4 times.
* Other treatments for warts on the skin. Your doctor can also remove warts on the skin by burning the wart, cutting out the wart or removing the wart with a laser. These treatments are stronger, but they may leave a scar. They are normally reserved for warts that have not cleared up with other treatments.

HPV is passed from person to person by direct or indirect contact, and from one body location to another on the same person. The virus more easily enters the body through an area of skin that is moist, peeling, or cracked. Some types (e.g., condyloma acuminta) are transmitted sexually. The degree of contact, location of the lesions, the amount of virus present (newer warts tend to contain more viral particles than older warts), and the state of a person's immunity are among the factors that determine HPV infection.

Most warts will eventually go away on their own, expelled by the body's immune system. About 25% are gone within 3-6 months and 65% disappear within 2 years. Unfortunately, some warts may persist for years. Warts will not leaves scars, though some of the more aggressive wart therapies might.

Genital warts
Warts on the genitals are very contagious and can be passed to another person during oral, vaginal or anal sex. It is important not to have unprotected sex if you or your partner has warts on the genital area. In women, warts can grow on the cervix (inside the vagina), and a woman may not even know she has them. She may pass the infection to her sexual partner without knowing it.

Genital warts treatments that can be applied directly to your skin include:
* Aldara (Imiquimod). This cream appears to boost your immune system's ability to fight genital warts. Avoid sexual contact while the cream is on your skin. It may weaken condoms and diaphragms and may irritate your partner's skin.
* Wartec (phodophyllotoxin) - Podophyllotoxin solution is used to treat warts on the outside of the genitals. It causes the wart to die and eventually peel off. It acts by preventing viral wart cells from dividing and multiplying. Eventually all the wart cells die and new healthy cells grow in their place. It has mild side effects and is well-suited for treatment at home.
* Podofilox (Condylox). Podofilox works by destroying genital wart tissue. Your doctor may want to administer the first application, and will recommend precautionary steps to prevent the medication from irritating surrounding skin. Never apply podofilox internally. Additionally, this medication isn't recommended for use during pregnancy.
* Trichloroacetic acid, or TCA. This chemical treatment burns off genital warts. TCA must always be applied by a doctor.

Most of the time, treatment of warts on the skin is successful and the warts are gone for good. Your body's immune system can usually get rid of any tiny bits of wart that may be left after a wart has been treated. Genital warts are more likely to come back because there's no cure for the virus that causes them and because warts are more difficult to control in a moist environment. If warts come back, see your doctor to talk about other ways to treat them.