WARTS

Warts are very common in children and adults.  They are caused by the human papilloma virus, which has many different strains.   The most common type of wart, called the “common wart” can occur on the skin anywhere on the body, however they tend to occur more frequently on the fingers, hands, elbows and feet.  They are small hard bumps, which are grayish brown, with rough surfaces and black dots in the center.

Warts are contagious and can be spread by touching someone’s wart, especially with an open area on your own skin, or touching  something that someone with a wart has used, such as a towel or other moist surface.  Children who bite or pick at their fingernails or tips of the fingers are more susceptible to contracting warts, because they expose areas under the skin which allows the virus to enter and cause the wart.

Most warts are not painful, but some can be.  Plantar warts, which occur on the bottom surface (plantar surface) of the foot tend to be larger and are often painful, since they are constantly being walked on.

Some warts occur in the genital area, but not usually in children. Please see the section on the Gardasil vaccine and genital warts.

Warts can be treated, but they often go away on their own, although it can take 6 months to 2 years.  Since there is no medicine to treat the virus causing the warts, even with treatment, there is no guarantee that the warts will not recur.  If there are many warts or they are painful, we may recommend treatment.  The first treatment we often recommend is an over-the-counter topical liquid medication, which has an acid in it which gets rid of the layers of the wart over a period of time. When doing that, you need to be careful not to apply the acid to the surrounding skin.  Another treatment that has shown to be effective in some studies is covering the wart with duct tape. This is thought to irritate the skin where the wart is and the body then has an immune response which destroys the wart.  Not all studies have confirmed that this works, but it is harmless and it may make sense to try it if the acid is not helping.

If that doesn’t work or if there are many warts or the warts are on the face, we usually recommend seeing a dermatologist, who can freeze the warts, burn them off or use laser treatment.  If the warts are plantar warts, you can also see a podiatrist for treatment.  We do not recommend home treatment for warts on the face, genitals or rectum.



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