About Warts
Many of us have had a wart somewhere on our bodies at some time.
Other than being a nuisance, most warts are harmless and go away on
their own.
More common in kids than in adults, warts are skin infections
caused by viruses of the human papillomavirus (HPV) family. They
can affect any area of the body, but tend to invade warm, moist
places, like small cuts or scratches on the fingers, hands, and
feet. Warts are usually painless unless they're on the soles of
the feet or another part of the body that gets bumped or touched
all the
time.
Kids can pick up HPV - and get warts - from touching
anything someone with a wart has used, like towels and surfaces.
Kids who bite their fingernails or pick at hangnails tend to get
warts more often than kids who don't because they can expose
less-protected skin and create open areas for a virus to enter and
cause the wart.
Types of warts include:
- common warts.
Usually found on fingers, hands, knees, and elbows, a common wart
is a small, hard bump that's dome-shaped and usually
grayish-brown. It has a rough surface that may look like the head
of a cauliflower, with black dots inside.
- flat warts.
These are about the size of a pinhead, are smoother than other
kinds of warts, and have flat tops. Flat warts may be pink, light
brown, or yellow. Most kids who get flat warts have them on their
faces, but they can also grow on arms, knees, or hands and can
appear in clusters.
- plantar warts.
Found on the bottom of the foot, plantar warts can be very
uncomfortable - like walking on a small stone.
- filiform warts.
These have a finger-like shape, are usually flesh-colored, and
often grow on or around the mouth, eyes, or nose.
Sometimes warts are sexually transmitted and appear in the
genital area, but most warts appear on the fingers, hands, and
feet.
Are Warts Contagious?
Simply touching a wart on someone doesn't guarantee that
you'll get one, too. But the viruses that cause warts
are
passed from person to person by close physical contact or from a
surface that a person with a wart touches, like a bathmat or a
shower floor. (You can't, however, get a wart from holding a
frog or toad, as your child might have wondered!)
A tiny cut or scratch can make any area of skin more vulnerable
to warts. Also, picking at a wart can spread warts to other parts
of the body.
The length of time between when someone is exposed to the virus
that causes warts and when a wart appears varies. Warts can grow
very slowly and may take weeks or longer, in some cases, to
develop.
Preventing Warts
Although there's no way to prevent warts, it's always a
good idea to encourage kids to
wash their hands
and skin regularly and well. If your child has a cut or
scratch, use soap and water to clean the area because open wounds
are more susceptible to warts and other infections.
It's also wise to have kids wear waterproof sandals or
flip-flops in public showers, locker rooms, and around public pools
(this can help protect against plantar warts and other infections,
like
athlete's foot
).
Treating Warts
Warts don't generally cause any problems, so it's not
always necessary to have them removed. Without treatment, it can
take anywhere from 6 months to 2 years for a wart to go away.
A doctor might decide to remove a wart if it's painful or
interferes with activities because of the discomfort.
Doctors have different ways of removing warts, including:
- using over-the-counter or prescription medications to put on
the wart
- burning the wart off using a light electrical current)
- freezing the wart with liquid nitrogen (called
cryosurgery
)
- using laser treatment (with recalcitrant warts)
Within a few days after the doctor's treatment, the wart may
fall off, but several treatments might be necessary. Doctors
don't usually cut off a wart because it can cause scarring and
the wart may return.
If an older child has a simple wart on the finger, ask
the doctor about using an over-the-counter wart remedy that
can help remove the wart. This treatment can take several weeks or
months before you see results, but eventually the wart should
crumble away from the healthy skin. Wart medicines contain strong
chemicals and should be used with care because they can also damage
the areas of healthy skin. Talk with your doctor before using any
over-the-counter wart medicine on the face or genitals.
Also make sure that your child:
- soaks the wart in warm water and removes dead skin on the
surface of the wart with an emery board (that's never going
to be used for nails) before applying the medicine. Be
careful not to file into it.
- keeps the area of the wart covered while the medicine
works
- knows not to rub, scratch, or pick at it to avoid spreading
the virus to another part of the body or causing the wart to
become infected
You might also have heard that you can use duct tape to remove a
wart. Talk to your doctor about whether this type of home treatment
is OK for your child.
When to Call the Doctor
Before you try to remove a wart with a store-bought remedy, call
your doctor if:
- you have a young child or infant with a wart anywhere on the
body
- your child (of any age) has a wart on the face, genitals, or
rectum
Also call the doctor if a wart or surrounding skin is:
- painful
- red
- bleeding
- swollen
- oozing pus
Although they can be a nuisance, warts are common in childhood
and unlikely to cause serious problems.
Reviewed by:
Patrice Hyde, MD
Date reviewed: November 2007
Originally reviewed by:
Joel Klein, MD
Note: All information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice,
diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.
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