Getting Rid of Warts
Warts. Even the name sounds ugly! Warts can be disfiguring and frustrating, as they can be difficult to treat and do not have any precise cure. In case you are embarrassed by a wart on your hand, face, foot or different body part, the information in this article will tell you where to start to get rid of your warts.
What exactly are warts?
Warts are caused by HPV (human papillomavirus), and as such, they can take a bit of time to do away with completely by the working of your body’s immune system. A few warts will disappear over time without treatment, but this time could range from a couple weeks to a few years, so you might wish to go for a more proactive method of getting rid of warts. Whichever technique you choose, you should give it time to work. Some techniques work faster than others. The quickest approach to getting rid of warts completely is by using 100% TCA. With this technique, positive outcomes are often noticed in much less than 10 days and are permanent. It is also the cheapest method and is discussed farther on in this article.
Use salicylic acid or 100% trichloroacetic acid (TCA)
Salicylic acid is the component of the majority of over-the-counter wart removers, including Compound W and Occlusal. Its effectiveness varies and it is able to take weeks for it to produce results.
Use duct tape
A lot of research has been done to assess the effectiveness of duct tape in eliminating warts. Duct tape occlusion remedy (DTOT) is supposed to localize medication inside the wart area as well as “choke” the wart itself. It has been discovered that duct tape used in combination with imiquimod 5% cream is an effective remedy to treat commonplace warts. However, it takes a long time (it can take up to six months) and usually people do not see much success with this method.
Liquid nitrogen
Another remedy that your physician can recommend for your wart problem is liquid nitrogen—or cryotherapy—to freeze the wart. It might take a few cryotherapy treatment sessions to completely eradicate a wart, and it is also very effective. If by any chance it doesn’t work, then the wart will reappear bigger than before with bigger blood vessels and it can then be almost impossible to get rid of.
Burn the wart off
When other methods fail, burning the wart off may be what’s needed. There will most likely be quite a lot of pain and the burning can cause scarring, so the best recommendation is to permit your doctor to perform the procedure. However, you can try this yourself at home if you are brave enough.
Have your physician cut it out
Go for this option as the last resort. Consult with your doctor and then have him/her get rid of the wart by cutting it out surgically. This is a complicated and delicate procedure that should only be done by a qualified and professional physician to prevent any chances of contamination and infection. A local anesthetic will likely be used to mitigate the pain during the procedure.
Image courtesy of: healthline.com, wickedjungle.com.
