Warts are small hard round skin growths that are generally caused by a virus, the human papilloma virus. The preferred way of removing warts is to visit a dermatologist for professional treatment. While this may work for the removal of the first or second wart on the hands or extremities, many people suffer from multiple growths and find professional treatments to be financially unattainable.
While there are several different methods of removing warts yourself these should never be attempted on warts that are found in the genital area or on areas that may cause use significant discomfort if they are scarred, such as the face. Warts found in these particular areas should be addressed by a dermatologist.
Removal of a wart means that the treatment must get to the root of the problem, the virus. Using over-the-counter hydrogen peroxide, Bactine, alcohol or hydrocodone may make the area around the wart less itchy or inflamed but it will not remove the wart. The best over-the-counter medication to remove warts is made specifically for that purpose and the common ingredients is concentrated salicylic acid.
These over-the-counter medications usually come in liquid form but can also come in gel form. Drops are applied directly to the affected area and the medication will usually burn the warts off with minimal skin damage. The biggest drawback is the amount of time the treatment takes and the potential for infection as the wart comes off.
Recently a second over-the-counter treatment has become popular. In the past dermatologists would remove warts and other skin growths using cryogenics. Cryogenics is the process of chemically freezing an area of skin which then loses its blood supply and dies. Often it takes only one or two treatments and the wart simply falls off as dead skin tissue.
Recently this type of treatment, cryogenics, has been made available over the counter for the consumer. The chemicals are stored in an aerosol can. The consumer places a cotton swab type applicator on the top of the can which is then loaded with the chemical. The applicator is placed directly over the wart and may require or only one or two treatments. Using salicylic acid is a much more cost-effective but using cryogenics requires less treatments and works faster.
In the past there have been other natural remedies which have been tried and have proven effective in studies or tests. In some current testing one homemade method has shown promise and that is the use of duct tape. The effects of using this treatment can take a few weeks on average but it\’s noninvasive and uses no chemicals. The patient files off the top dead layers of skin and covers the exposed area of duct tape. This process is repeated every couple of days until the wart disappears.
Another home remedy is actually using clippers and a disinfectant to remove the warts. Unfortunately the recurrence rate from this treatment protocol is very high because only the top layers of the wart can be removed and it does not remove the virus. This treatment is also very painful and can result in a significant amount of bleeding.
Other household remedies which have been used are banana skins, vinegar, hot water and soap or on skins potatoes. Some other remedies are also potentially dangerous and can lead to infection or permanent scarring. Without controlled studies for these natural remedies it is difficult to know whether the warts disappeared because the remedy worked or because the immune system response to the virus took care of the warts.
There are times when warts will disappear on their own, although it can take months if not years. Some physicians advocate leaving the warts alone if they are not causing any pain, discomfort or itching and if they cause no psychological distress such as those on the face. However because these warts can be spread from one area of the body to the other it is important to evaluate their current growth stage before deciding to leave them alone.