EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT WARTS!

A common misconception about warts that most patients have is that they were not aware they are actually caused by the HPV virus – all warts are caused by this virus, however, there are many different types of HPV.

There are also different types of warts. The common wart is rough and raised, and is said to look like a cauliflower. When the surface of these warts is nicked, it may reveal tiny black specks, which are actually blood vessels under the skin.

Flat warts are just like what the name sounds like – flat! They commonly grow on sun exposed areas of the skin and are smooth.

Filiform warts tend to grow on the nose, eyes, or mouth. They tend to be long and bothersome.

Subungual warts form around the nails and are usually very painful. The skin around or under the nail makes the skin rough and ridged, therefore, making treatment more painful and difficult.

Genital warts are spread through sexual intercourse. Most of the time, they can be asympatomatic, however, once they grow and become more visible, the patients begin to feel itching or discomfort. Due to the various strains of HPV, it is important to get genital warts tested to determine which strain you may have as some strains may cause cancer.

There are several ways in which your provider may choose to treat your warts. Most commonly, warts are frozen with cyrotherapy or burned with electrosurgery. Your provider will guide you in providing the best treatment for you based on your type of warts and how many you have. Other treatment modalities include, curettage, or scraping the wart, and even injection or applying certain medications. Since some warts tend to be deeper than others, it may take several treatments for your wart to be completely treated in order to ensure it does not grow back.

If you think you have a wart, see your dermatology provider today and get the proper treatment for you!