July 3rd, 2010
A wart is a kind of infection that can be spread from person to person. Those warts are commonly found on the skin are caused by viral infection and the virus responsible for such warts is HPV or Human Papillomaviruses. These viruses spread from person to person through contact or contaminated surface. There are more than 100 types of HPVs presently known and are known to infect different regions in the body. Certain HPVs also result in carcinogenic growth in the body.
Warts give an ugly appearance to the body and everybody would be prompted to remove them once acquired on their skins. There are a variety of warts and have varying influences based on the extent of infection on the body. Common warts can be removed using various techniques which can be natural or artificial types. There are methods that rely on using salicylic acid as healer which is a chemical known to remove warts effectively. The preparations made out of this chemical are available over the counter in medical centers as drops, gels, pads and also plasters. Whatever be the size of the wart, this chemical preparation is capable of removing it.
There are other methods that are normally not prescribed by medical practitioners. This involves freezing method where liquid nitrogen is applied on the skin or any other aerosol is sprayed on the skin. This method is usually painful and may result in formation of scars on the skin. The method relies on blister generation by applying liquid nitrogen to the skin and then allowing it to freeze. The blister is capable enough of removing warts on the skin. But the process results in scar formation on the region of the skin where the chemical was applied. During the phase of treatment some amount of pain also may be experienced by the person undertaking this treatment.
There are other natural methods of removing warts. Some people rely on using duct tapes to remove warts. It has been claimed that usage of duct tape can suffocate warts and then they die naturally. As such removal of warts can be accomplished using duct tapes as the main tool for removal. However it has been found that this treatment is not always successful and is hard to use. Results from such treatment can only be seen effectively if the duct tape is allowed to be in contact with the infected skin for several days. All that is required is patience and belief in this regards. The failure of this method is due to the tape falling off quiet frequently from the skin.
Whatever is the treatment type adopted, the result effectiveness derived from various methods also vary from person to person. Some may have acquired good results from natural methods while some others may derive benefit from artificial methods. Natural methods are said to give more effective results due to their way of treating the skin. They look into the very root of the problem and heal if the treatment is taken for several days.
Tags: Warts
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July 3rd, 2010
Wart is a common problem among many and generally it is a small growth that resembles a cauliflower and it typically grows on hands or feet. Warts are caused by viral infection. They generally disappear after few months but there are cases where they recur and exist for years together. The virus infection is specifically by the human papillomavirus-HPV
There are various types of warts which differ in area affected, size as well as the HPV involved. Some of them are
- Verruca Vulgaris also known as Common wart – these are most common on hands and knees and appear to be raised with roughened surface.
- Verruca plana or flat wart – these appear commonly on face, neck, hands, wrist and knees and they appear to be small with smooth flattened with tan or flesh color.
- Verruca, verruca pedis or plantar wart – these are found mostly on pressure points of the feet and they appear to be hard and painful lump often with multiple black specks in the center.
- Digitate or filiform wart – These warts are seen commonly near the eyelids and lips and they appear to be finger-like or like thread.
- Venereal wart, condyloma acuminatum, verruca acuminate or commonly called as genital wart – these are the warts affecting the genital areas.
There are various treatments that may be prescribed by a medical practitioner such as
- Removal of dead surface skin cells usually using blistering agents, salicylic acid, formaldehyde or immune system modifiers. This process is known as Kerotolysis.
- Freezing the wart with liquid nitrogen generally. After this, the wart falls off by itself. Sometimes surgically the wart is removed as well. This is known as Cryosurgery.
- Laser treatment where the laser beam is used to remove the wart.
- Imiquimod is one of the creams that helps the body’s immune system to fight the virus by improving interferon production
- By stimulating the body’s immune system using the Canadian injections at the site of wart
- Using Cantharidin. It is a chemical found in many members of beetle family.
Except Cryosurgery, none of the above treatments are very effective on single use. The warts generally return after the healing of the skin. But repeated treatment would get rid of the warts. It might sometimes take a few months and in some cases a few years as
well. After they disappear treatment would be required only if the lesions are painful or are a cosmetic problem.
There are many over the counter options available in the market as well. One of them is the adhesive pads treated with salicylic acid and the other is a bottle of concentrated salicylic acid. These are readily available in the drugstores and supermarkets. Using these products it might take nearly 12 weeks to remove a stubborn wart. Apart from the above said two methods there is another product namely silver nitrate in the form of a caustic pencil which is also available in supermarkets. The instructions have to be followed strictly to avoid staining of skin and clothes. It would take nearly three to six daily treatments to be effective.
Tags: wart removal, Wart types
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