My Warts Are Embarrassing: Can You Help?

 Warts are noncancerous skin growths that can develop anywhere on your body. They’re caused by certain strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV) that infect your skin and trigger rapid production of keratin-containing skin cells, leading to the raised bumps known as warts. 

Even though we all encounter HPV strains regularly, some people are more prone to developing warts, including those who have lower immune function and those who have an occupation that requires handling meat such as beef, fish, and poultry.

There are several different kinds of warts, and although they’re not dangerous, they can be unsightly and even uncomfortable, depending on their size and location. Some warts go away on their own, but in many cases, professional treatment is the way to go for wart removal.

Because of that, our dermatology team at Thomas Dermatology in Las Vegas and Henderson, Nevada, and Lake Havasu City, Kingman, and Bullhead City, Arizona, offers a wide range of treatment options for warts at our practices. This month’s blog explores the different types of warts and how we treat them. 

Types of warts

Different types of warts are caused by different strains of HPV and appear on different parts of your body. Let’s explore some of the more common kinds:

Common warts

HPV strains 2 and 4 most often cause common warts, and they typically appear on your hands. They can range from the size of a pinhead to a pea and can sometimes have black dots inside them, which are actually tiny blood clots. 

Plantar warts

Plantar warts grow on the bottom of your feet and can be caused by numerous types of HPV. Unlike other types of warts, plantar warts are flat, since the pressure of standing and walking pushes these warts into your feet. In fact, they’re often mistaken for calluses. Plantar warts can often grow very large and become very painful when you put any pressure on them. 

Flat warts

Caused by HPV strains 3, 10, and 28, flat warts tend to be much smaller and flatter than other wart types. However, they can develop anywhere on your body, and they often grow in large clusters that contain anywhere from 20-100 warts. 

Options for wart removal

If your wart (or warts) is mild and doesn’t bother you, you can simply leave it alone and wait to see if it goes away on its own. You can also try home remedies such as applying salicylic acid to the wart or covering it with duct tape or a banana peel to see if it eliminates the wart. 

However, if you have lots of warts that are large and bothersome or affect your appearance, we offer a few different treatment options to remove them. 

Cryotherapy 

During this treatment, we apply liquid nitrogen to your wart to freeze it off. This treatment is best used for common warts, and it typically takes several sessions for the wart to fall off completely.

Cantharidin

With this option, we apply a liberal coat of a chemical solution called cantharidin to your wart. This causes a blister to form under the wart, and the wart lifts off your skin. About a week after you get the treatment, we can remove the dead wart.

Electrosurgery

For more stubborn warts, we use heat and electricity to burn off wart tissue. Although incredibly effective, it may cause scarring. 

Excision 

Another option for stubborn warts is excision. During this treatment, we numb the affected area with a local anesthetic and shave off the wart or warts. Scarring is also possible with this choice of wart removal. 

For expert wart removal, look no further than our Thomas Dermatology team. Schedule an appointment for treatment by calling your nearest office location or using our online booking feature today.