How To Get Rid Of Warts On Hands And Fingers? Causes And Treatment

2024 Author: Josephine Shorter | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-17 02:10

Warts on hands and fingers

Warts and papillomas never form on the human body by themselves. They are the result of infection of the body with the HPV virus. More than 100 of its varieties are already known to science.

The infection is transmitted by contact of an infected person with healthy people, using common household items. You can get infected while going to the sauna, swimming pool, bathhouse and other public places.

Immediately after infection, the person will not feel any changes. He will not have warts or papillomas on his hands. The incubation period can last up to six months or even more. Therefore, it is often very problematic to understand how and where exactly the infection occurred.

Most often, warts appear in children, although they can form in an adult, especially against the background of a decrease in immunity. Increased sweating, skin trauma, stress, etc. increase the likelihood of their occurrence. Warts are a cosmetic defect, so they can and should be treated.

Content:

• Why is it necessary to treat warts?
• How does the infection take place?
• Can a wart be removed at home?
• Modern methods of removing warts
• Preventing the appearance of warts
• When should you see a doctor?
• Which doctor should I go to with a wart?

Why is it necessary to treat warts?

Not all HPV viruses cause warts. In this regard, subtypes numbered 57, 26-29, 14-17, 12, 10, 7, 1-5 are dangerous. Moreover, viruses of type 1, 2, 3, and 4 provoke the appearance of plantar warts. When infected with HPV numbered 49, 28, 3 and 10, flat warts appear, and when HPV type 27 is ingested, they are common.

There are dangerous strains of the HPV virus that are associated with the risk of malignant warts. These include: 30, 31, 33, 39, 40, 51, 52, 55, 61-64, 70. These types can cause cancerous tumors.

Genital warts and papillomas on the cervix, in the vagina, on the male penis appear when infected with HPV viruses numbered 11, 16, 13, 31, 33, 35. Growths caused by viruses 16, 31, 33, 18, 56, 66, 70 are the most dangerous in terms of malignancy.

To determine the nature of the origin of the wart and decide how best to get rid of it, you need to visit a dermatologist.

Most experts are of the opinion that it is necessary to remove warts, since they are not only a cosmetic defect, but they can also be injured, fester, and cause pain. In addition, a person with a wart is a source of infection. They can appear on other parts of the body. Some warts can become cancerous.

Before removing a skin build-up, you need to get medical advice.

Do not delay a visit to a specialist if the following changes occur with the wart:

• The wart was injured, its integrity was violated, blood was released from it.
• The wart hurts, itches.
• The skin growth has changed its color, shape or size.
• At first there was one growth on the body, and then new warts appeared.
• The wart is in a conspicuous place, the person injures her.
• Warts cause aesthetic discomfort.

If a wart appears in a child under 5 years old, then it cannot be removed, regardless of how the parents would like to do it. When the child has crossed this age line, you need to seek the advice of a dermatologist. If it was decided to get rid of the build-up mechanically, then you need to contact only specialized clinics. Beauty salons are not suitable for this purpose.

The doctor can remove the wart by cryodestruction, electrocoagulation, or burn it out using a laser. These methods are considered less traumatic, they all have their advantages and disadvantages.

Experts recommend temporarily abandoning the removal of the wart in the following situations:

• Pregnancy.
• Recent infection.
• Aggravation of any chronic illness.
• High blood pressure.
• Acute phase of herpes.

How does the infection take place?

HPV infection occurs through contact with mucous membranes, or with the skin on which there are warts. Less commonly, a person becomes infected when using a nail file, nail scissors and other household items.

Microtrauma on the skin increases the likelihood of infection entering the body. At the same time, she is capable of not showing herself in any way for a long time. Warts will appear only after the immune system loses its ability to contain the virus.

There is a high likelihood of contracting HPV with the further appearance of warts in the following cases:

• Personal contact with a sick person.
• Use of common household items.
• Use of untreated manicure supplies.
• Walking barefoot in the bathhouse, in the sauna, in the pool.
• Sexual contact with a person infected with HPV. Thus, papillomas and condylomas are transmitted.
• Wearing tight shoes that chafe your feet. This can lead to the appearance of plantar warts.

If the human body is weakened by stress, improper daily routine, fatigue, poor nutrition, then this will be favorable conditions for the appearance of warts.

Can a wart be removed at home?

Doctors strongly advise against removing skin growths at home.

There are several reasons for this:

• After such a procedure, a scar, burn or scar will remain on the skin.
• The likelihood of infection in the wound surface increases.
• A wart can transform into a cancerous tumor if it was caused by oncogenic strains of the HPV virus.

Modern methods of removing warts

Today, excision of warts with a scalpel is not practiced. This is a rather painful and unsafe treatment method, which has been replaced by new technologies. Surgical excision of the wart can be applied only when its size is very large. The patient is injected with a local anesthetic, then the wart is cut with a scalpel and a cosmetic suture is applied. After such an intervention, a scar remains on the skin.

Treatment method	Laser treatment	Liquid nitrogen treatment	Treatment with high frequency currents
Anesthesia	The method requires anesthesia.	The method requires anesthesia.	The method requires anesthesia.
Number of sessions	One procedure is required, but there is a chance of relapse.	Most often, the wart is removed in several approaches.	Removal takes place in 1 procedure.
How long does the session last	1 minute	10-40 seconds	15-30 minutes
Safety	All methods are safe for health
the effect	An effective method for removing warts, but relapses are sometimes possible.	Sometimes a repeat procedure is required.	An effective method for treating warts, but not suitable for removing plantar growths.
Features of the restoration of the skin	The wound heals in 10 days, during this period it must be treated with antiseptic agents. After 14 days or less, the crust will fall off.	After exposure to the skin with liquid nitrogen, a bubble appears, which must be protected from injury. It is treated with salicylic alcohol or potassium permanganate in solution. After a week, the wound heals.	The wound heals in 10 days, at which time it needs to be treated with antiseptic compounds.
Will the scar remain?	Most often, there are no marks on the skin.	If the freeze was deep, then there is the likelihood of a scar.	After treatment, no scars remain on the skin.
Procedure price	From 2500 to 5000 rubles.	For a wart less than 0.5 cm in diameter, you will need to pay 100-500 rubles, for a wart more than 0.5 cm in diameter - from 350 to 1000 rubles.	The cost of the procedure in Moscow is 1000-1500 rubles.

All methods of removing warts have certain characteristics. If you remove the build-up with nitrogen, then the probability of its reappearance remains, and if the cold exposure is too deep, scars may remain.

Removing skin growths using a laser is painful. Therefore, the method is rarely practiced in childhood, and it is also not used in places with increased sensitivity.

The prices shown in the table are approximate. In many ways, the cost of the procedure is determined by the city in which it is performed, the status of the medical institution, the doctor's qualifications, and the size of the wart. The larger it is, the more expensive the procedure will be, regardless of the chosen treatment method.

Sometimes warts are removed not mechanically, but chemically, acting on the build-up with acids.

For this, tools such as:

• Solcoseryl acid-based 4 types.
• Verrucacid, which contains metacresol and phenol.
• Feresol. This agent has a pronounced bactericidal effect.
• Papillek. A wart remover that has no side effects.
• Superpurifier with potassium and sodium hydroxide. This is an inexpensive but effective treatment for skin growths.
• Cryopharma, Warner Cryo.
• Trichloroacetic acid. The drug is applied pointwise to the wart and left to dry completely.

Any pharmaceutical preparations should be used with caution, since they contain aggressive substances that can damage the skin.

Salicylic acid is sometimes used to remove the wart. However, before using this remedy, you need to consult a doctor. With its help, you can not try to remove skin growths on the genitals, on the face. The product must be applied directly to the wart. Salicylic acid is also used to burn out plantar warts, calluses, and corns. The drug can be purchased in the form of a patch, ointment or liquid.

Preventing the appearance of warts

To prevent the appearance of warts, you must lead a healthy lifestyle. It is important to maintain your immunity, eat right, avoid stressful situations, etc.

Doctors give the following recommendations, the observance of which will prevent the appearance of warts:

• Compliance with the rules of personal hygiene. After the street you need to be hands with soap, try not to use items that are intended for general use. If possible, you should touch handrails in public transport, doorknobs in stores, etc. as little as possible.
• If the skin was injured, then it must be immediately treated with brilliant green or iodine.
• You should eat right, eat fortified food.
• Situations that cause stress should be avoided.
• When visiting a bathhouse or sauna, it is important to use your own slippers.
• When using cleaning agents, you should protect your hands with gloves.
• Shoes should be chosen comfortable, made from natural materials.
• You should refuse promiscuous sexual intercourse. The more often a woman changes partners, the higher the risk of contracting HPV and other infectious diseases.

When should you see a doctor?

There are situations in which it is better to immediately consult a doctor:

• The wart grows in the genital area.
• The growth is uneven in color.
• The wart changes color, size and shape.
• The wart is constantly traumatized.
• There are many warts.
• The person is not sure that he has a wart and not another tumor.

Which doctor should I go to with a wart?

If a wart appears on the skin, then you need to seek the advice of a dermatologist. When the growth is located on the genitals, or on the genitals, you need to visit a venereologist or urologist.

Article author: Mochalov Pavel Alexandrovich | d. m. n. therapist

Education: Moscow Medical Institute. IM Sechenov, specialty - "General Medicine" in 1991, in 1993 "Occupational Diseases", in 1996 "Therapy".