A wart is a small,rough growth on the skin, resembling a cauliflower. Eccasionally, it can be smooth and plain. It is caused by a virus named human papilloma virus or HPV.
The HPV virus usually enters the body through the areas of the broken skin and spreads from person to person by direct touch or by touching objects used by the infected person.
Within the body of the affected person, it can spread from one part of the body to another.
It can spread by sharing of shaving kits at salon or after beauty parlour services.
It can spread by direct skin to skin touch or by sharing of objects and thereby can be transmitted from family members of close contact.
Sexual transmission can occur (genital warts).
Warts vary in their appearance as per their types and the site they affect. These include
Common wart - small local swellings over the skin surface that have a rough and uneven surface. These can occur anywhere, including face, hands, body, and scalp.
Flat wart - occur as small, smooth surface, skin coloured projections, usually numerous in number.
Filiform wart - appear a slender finger like projection usually over the face.
Genital warts - common warts that appear over the genitalia in males and females, however, they appear more whitish and glistening than the common warts.
Periungual warts - a variant of the wart that occurs as a small cluster of warts with rough and cauliflower like surface around the nail.
Plantar warts - appears as a white projection on the foot with numerous black dot at the centre, is painful if present over pressure points or pressure bearing areas of the foot.
Mosiac wart - A group of tightly clustered plantar type warts, more common on the hands and soles of the feet.
One should consult a dermatologist who is qualified for treating warts.
A dermatologist can easily confirm the diagnosis of the warts based on the appearance of the skin lesions.
No laboratory test is usually needed for diagnosis.
Rarely when the diagnosis is less certain, the doctor can do a biopsy, examine under a microscope and confirm the diagnosis.
Warts can be treated both by medical and procedural treatments.
Various topical medications that can be applied on the surface of the warts
Various procedure treatments can also be used to treat the warts like
Cryotherapy works by freezing the wart using liquid nitrogen kept in a can and can be applied directly or through a nozzle
Radio frequency cautery uses heat energy to physically destroy the infected cells.
Lasers such as Carbon dioxide Laser can be used to destroy the wart.
Surgical excision is not routinely adviced for wart, but can be considered for large lesions or when other forms of treatments are not feasible.
There are chances that warts may recur after a course of treatment, but eventually they should respond to treatment.
Warts are of a very large size that remain untreated for a long time and genital warts can lead to cancer of the skin and genitalia.
Warts over the genitalia are highly contagious partner. Partner should practice safe sex methods such as using condoms.
Sometimes blood tests are necessary in the case of genital wants to rule out concurrent sexually transmitted diseases and infections such, including HIV
Recombinant human papilloma vaccine is a vaccine designed to prevent cervical cancer and genital warts, but it does not prevent common warts.
Disclaimer: This article is only for general patient information and is not intended for self medication. There is no legal liability of IADVL arising out of any adverse consequence to the patient. Subsequent to its use for self treatment of the disease images adjust for the depiction of the condition and is not to be used for any other purpose.
Explore articles in this section to gain a deeper understanding of various skin diseases and conditions. Each article provides detailed information on symptoms, causes, and treatment options, helping you to manage and address these dermatological issues effectively.
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Dandruff is a common scalp condition in which small pieces of dry skin flake off from the scalp and is usually associated with itching. The exact cause of Dandruff and Seborrhoeic Dermatitis is unknown.
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