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Warts (papillomas) are benign neoplasms that form on the skin and mucous membranes as a result of the activity of the human papillomavirus (HPV). Treatment is carried out both in medical institutions and on an outpatient basis.
From this article you will learn:
- what causes warts, the main reasons;
- how they look on the arms, legs, their photos;
- what types of warts are there;
- what are plantar warts;
- how to remove them with pharmaceutical preparations, laser;
- what can be done at home.
At-risk groups
IT IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW!
At risk is potentially any person whose skin has microtraumas, and those who actively visit public places such as gyms, swimming pools, and bathhouses. This also includes butchers and those involved in cutting fish: such people, shown in the photo, most often have thread-like warts that like to affect the hands.
Classification of viral warts
To determine the type of tumor, you need to know what viral warts look like and where they appear. Doctors distinguish the following types:
- ordinary. They are small bumps on the skin of the hands and do not differ in color;
- plantar. Occurs on the feet or toes. They are under pressure, so they grow inward rather than outward. This structure of the wart leads to damage to internal tissues and is accompanied by constant pain. This species is sometimes called "spurs" or "spikes";
- flat. They have a light yellow tint or do not differ at all from the color of the skin. They generally occur more often in children than in adults. Can be found on the bends of the arms, legs, neck, armpits, chest;
- genital warts. Occurs on the genitals. Transmitted sexually, but manifests itself after a few months;
- papillamatous. Occurs in small children under 1 year of age. The wart affects the larynx and gradually grows. If the tumor is not removed in time, it can lead to blockage of the airways.
Forms
Taking into account the cause of formation, as well as the formation, age-related keratomas are able to acquire a certain shape. At the moment, there are 5 types of senile keratomas.
Spotted
At this stage, a spot with increased pigmentation forms on the skin. It does not protrude above the skin, but has a somewhat flaky surface. The contours are round or unclear. It occurs in the form of a single growth or multiple neoplasms. Mainly found on the upper limbs, back and chest, and on the face.
Nodular
At this stage, the spot begins to protrude above the skin, its surface is smooth. Here individual scales can already be distinguished, but they fit very tightly to the lower layers. This stage is characterized by slow dynamics.
Plaque
Senile keratomas that take the form of a disc. They are flat neoplasms of irregular shape, but with outlined contours that are gray in color. Under the top dense crust, when scraped off, there is a lower layer. It may bleed.
Seborrheic
Individual plaques begin to merge together, their junctions resemble cracks. The top layer is very peeling. In some places the scales fall out and the formation bleeds.
At this stage, multiple keratomas are noted on the surface of the face and body. Such growths cause physical discomfort as they begin to itch and become inflamed. In such a situation, it is imperative to consult a doctor.
Cutaneous horn
The keratoma becomes keratinized. The scales protrude significantly above the skin and become dark brown or black.
This new growth resembles a mulberry or cauliflower. At this stage, the keratoma should be checked for benignity, as it can degenerate into a squamous cell form of cancer.
It is optimal to be observed by a specialist from the moment the first spot forms in order to control the situation.
Key Facts
Warts on the hands do not appear out of nowhere. Their appearance is caused by papillomavirus, which is ubiquitous and can be present inside the body from birth. However, the wart does not necessarily grow immediately. Some kind of stimulating factor needs to work. Photos from our new collection will tell you more about this unpleasant phenomenon.
Warts on the skin of the hands, fingers and toes
What do filamentous warts look like? This type of growth most often appears in areas of high friction - on the arms and legs. Due to increased mechanical stress, growths age much earlier than those located on other parts of the body.
Over time, the warts become coarser, crack and acquire a yellow or light brown color, and through the thinned epidermis black rods are visible - the roots of the growth.
How to get rid of warts at home using pharmaceutical products
When a wart appears on a finger, how to get rid of it is the main question; a number of medications are used to solve it. The action of some of them is aimed at eliminating skin growths, others have antiviral properties, suppress the activity of HPV, and increase the body's immune defense.
Hydrogen peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide is an antiseptic that is a colorless liquid with a faint sour odor. Hydrogen peroxide has low effectiveness in removing skin tumors.
Hydrogen peroxide, its price is 6–12 rubles.
Hydrogen peroxide is applied to the papillomas, one drop every 5-6 hours. Manipulation using hydrogen peroxide is performed daily.
Iodine
The drug is applied to skin growths and flat warts using a cotton swab 1–5 times a day. The minimum duration of iodine use is a week.
The product should not be used if you are hypersensitive to it, children or pregnant women.
Ointment for papillomas
Viferon is an ointment for warts on the hands and other parts of the body, which has antiviral activity. The drug contains human recombinant interferon. Viferon also contains tocopherol acetate, which enhances the antiviral effect of interferon.
The product is applied to the growths once a day. Viferon is used from 5 days to a month. Ointment for papillomas can be used by pregnant and breastfeeding women. Viferon is also available in gel form.
The price of Viferon for warts and papillomas in a pharmacy is 140–180 rubles.
Allomedin gel is a medicine for warts containing the peptide allostatin. It is applied to papillomas twice a day for 3 weeks.
Oxolinic ointment for warts is another remedy with an antiviral effect. The active substance of the drug is dioxotetrahydroxytetrahydronaphthalene. This ointment for papillomas is applied to neoplasms 1–3 times a day for a month.
How to treat warts with tablets
Treatment of warts and papillomas with medications includes the use of drugs that enhance immune defense. Isoprinosine is a synthetic purine derivative with an immunostimulating, nonspecific antiviral effect.
The drug is taken 2 tablets three times a day for 3 weeks.
How to remove a wart at home with solutions
Verrucacid contains phenol, metacresol, and has a necrotizing effect when applied to neoplasms. The product is used in the presence of papillomas of various locations, including plantar warts. Small growths are treated 3–4 times in a row, waiting for the preparation to dry completely, large ones – 7–10 times. The manipulation is repeated after a week.
The price of Verrukacid is 190–130 rubles.
SuperClean solution contains sodium, potassium hydroxide, which is an alkaline solution. It is usually applied drop by drop to the papillomatous growth with a plastic applicator for 3 days. It should be borne in mind that this drug does not eliminate the cause of warts on the hands and treatment with it only causes the death of the tissues treated with it.
The Collomac solution contains salicylic acid, which softens skin growths when applied topically. It is used twice a day for a week. The drug should not be used to treat moles.
Removal at home using cryogenic preparations
Cryopharma is a drug for cryodestruction of warts. It is produced in the form of a bottle with dimethyl ether, propane, reaching a temperature of -57°C at the exit from the bottle.
The product is applied to the papilloma using special applicators included in the package. The treated tissues are frozen, and after 10–14 days the skin growths disappear on their own.
The price of Cryopharm is 580–850 rubles.
Prevention
After removal of the wart, the risk of growths forming on healthy skin remains, since the virus continues to be in the body. To avoid the appearance of new warts, it is necessary to strengthen the immune system. To do this, you can use both special preparations and a balanced diet, vitamin complexes.
It is impossible to avoid re-infection with the virus, since it is transmitted through household means. The risks of infection are reduced only if you are in good health. Children can be vaccinated to protect against dangerous strains of HPV with a high degree of oncogenicity.
Ways to remove warts
So that the tumor does not disturb it, it can be removed. There are several such methods:
- cryodestruction. The method is based on freezing the wart body with liquid nitrogen. After the procedure, tissue necrosis occurs, and it falls off on its own;
- electrocoagulation. Under the influence of current, the wart is detached from the body. The advantages of the method are that it allows you to remove tumors of any size;
- laser removal. Using a laser, the wart is removed painlessly and quickly. The method is gaining more and more popularity.
Diagnostics
Growths, even if they are benign, have no place on the back or any other side of the hand. To understand how best to get rid of a tumor, you must first undergo a full diagnosis in a doctor’s office. A dermatologist treats such diseases. His consultation costs patients an average of 300 rubles.
Before removing a problematic wart from the patient’s palm, the doctor will carefully examine it and adjacent areas of skin. By appearance, an experienced specialist will be able to determine the type of neoplasm on the surface of the hands. Removal of warts on the palm cannot be prescribed until the concentration of the virus in the patient’s body has been determined. PCR (polymerase chain reaction) analysis helps to cope with this task. The cost of the procedure depends on the clinic where it is performed. On average, the price of analysis is 700 rubles.
What will happen if left untreated?
Alas, not all of the types of warts on the hands are purely an aesthetic problem, as many are accustomed to believe. Above you could see photos depicting multiple growths - further growth of warts is one of the possible unpleasant consequences of refusing timely treatment.
Under what circumstances do they occur?
If we are talking about the viral spread of warts , a fair question arises: - Why do some people get sick during contact and others not? A person exposed to HPV does not always become the owner of warts.
The wart virus can wait in the wings for many months and will only manifest itself under suitable conditions. People with weakened immune systems are primarily susceptible to the disease.
Those who are overweight and have “many folds” on their body. Suffering from chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, diabetes. Teenagers during the period of hormonal growth, pregnant women, older people.
You can find out what causes warts on the fingers and toes and how to remove growths on the fingers in our other materials by clicking on the appropriate link.
What to do?
Removal is the first thing a person with manifested HPV thinks about. Note that warts that grow on the fingers, as in the photo, can disappear on their own. You should think about the possibility of removal if more than two years have passed since the appearance of the growth or if the number of growths has begun to increase.
