Warts are skin growths or protrusions, caused mainly by the Human Papillomavirus (HPV). Warts are of different types and can grow on the hands, feet, face and even genitals. Although warts tend to disappear on their own, they could take anywhere between a few days and a few years to disappear, which is why you might consider seeking medical or clinical skin wart removal.
Types of Warts Before you consider the methods of removal, it is important to know more about what type of wart affects you.
Types of Warts Before you consider the methods of removal, it is important to know more about what type of wart affects you.
- Common Warts – They usually grow on fingers and toes, and are gray in color
- Plantar’s Warts – These appear on the soles of the feet. Unlike other types, these grow inside the skin and are characterized by clotted blood vessels that appear as tiny black dots.
- Flat Warts – These may arise in large numbers on the face, hands and legs. They tend to be small and not easily noticeable.
- Filiform Warts – Filiform generally grow on the skin. They are like a long stalk and are usually of the same color as the skin.
- Periungual Warts – They grow around and under toenails and fingernails. They can be painful and affect nail growth.
- Genital Warts – They can appear around the pubic area, growing in/around the anus or vagina. They may look like red/pink colored flesh and can appear in clusters. They are usually not painful. Genital warts are sexually transmitted and caused by certain strains of HPV. Some types of HPV can also cause cervical cancer in women.
- Freezing – In this treatment, the wart is sprayed with liquid nitrogen, resulting in the formation of a blister around the wart. The wart then slowly detaches and falls off.
- Cantharidin – An extract of blister beetle, when applied to a wart, forms a blister around it and lifts it off the skin. After this, the doctor removes the dead skin cells.
- Minor Surgery – When warts cannot be removed by non-surgical methods, they are removed by burning them using an electric needle or through deep freezing.
- Laser Surgery – An intense beam of light is used to destroy the wart tissue.