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What do you know about Warts?
Warts are unwanted, non-threatening skin growths on the top layer of the skin caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). They mostly turn up on the fingers, around the fingernails, or sometimes in the genital area.
Symptoms of Warts:
Warts can arise in different shapes and size. They can be round and bumpy, flat and rough or sometimes smooth. The symptoms of warts vary with the types of warts. Further explanations below:
• Common Warts: They usually grow on the hands. They are rough, grainy, and grey-brown in color and have a rounded top.
• Plantar Warts: They can appear on the soles of the foot. They usually grow into the skin, and not out of the skin. This growth can make standing and walking difficult and painful.
• Flat Warts: They can develop on the face, arms or legs. They are usually multiple small bumps packed in an area. Due to scraping, they have flat tops and are light yellow, pink or light brown in color.
• Periungual Warts: They develop around or under the fingernails or toenails and can be painful. They appear as jagged bumps with a rough surface.
• Filiform Warts: They can grow on the face, neck, eyelids, or lips. They are usually long, thin and same color with the flesh.
How to Prevent Warts:
Wart viruses are communicable. Hence, apply the following tips for preventing warts from spreading to others if you are already infected with warts:
• Do not pick at your warts.
• Keep your warts dry always because moisture makes warts worse.
• Always keep your warts properly covered with bandages.
• Wash your hands if you come in contact with any warts.
• Do not comb, brush or shave the area infected with warts as it could spread the virus to other areas of your body.
• To prevent genital warts from spreading, desist from sexual contact while infected with warts.
How to Treat Warts:
Generally, warts are not that serious and they disappear themselves ultimately. Nonetheless, you should see your local doctor in case of genital warts. You should also take notes that warts are sometimes painful. Recommendations of a doctor may be one of the following:
• Freezing: Liquid nitrogen is used to freeze warts. Then, a blister grows around the wart and the dead tissue falls off within a week.
• Cantharidin: This is a toxic chemical compound produced by species of blister beetles. It is applied to the wart area and then a bandage is used to cover it. The blister formed lifts the wart off the skin and the doctor cleans the dead area.
• Medications: Medications like bleomycin is injected into the wart to kill the virus. Also, there is a drug called Aldara that is used to treat genital warts.
• Laser: The warts are placed under an intense laser beam which burns and kill its tissues.
• Surgery: If other treatments are unable to treat the wart, a minor surgery can be performed to remove it.
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