Warts
The most humbling problem for a dermatologist to treat. Some go away on their own, some are tough.
What is wart?
Warts are an area of skin infected with the HPV virus. There are over 100 strains of HPV, most are not sexually transmitted.
How did I get it?
Warts are infectious and are passed from person to person or from a person with a wart touching an object that another person then touches. A common way to transmit a wart is by walking without shoes in an area where another person has walked without shoes (and has a wart). It is even more common to spread a wart that you already have from one area of the body to another.
How do you treat it?
There are so many treatments for warts. The most effective is an over-the-counter called Salicylic acid. Coupled with soaking the wart for 10 minutes, then scrubbing out the dead skin with an emery board, then applying the Salicylic acid and covering. The “Soak, Scrape, Acid, Tape” technique – we recommend trying this for 3 months before considering seeing a doctor unless the wart is large, painful, or you have other issues.
Another method is the watch and wait method (do nothing) – most warts go away on their own within 1-2 years.
For more information see a board-certified dermatologist!
Source: American Academy of Dermatology (link - https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/a-z/warts-overview) also (https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/a-z/warts-self-care)
For Physicians only (or patients of Dr. Contestable) – “Warts – Patient Handout”