How and with what can you remove warts at home?

The appearance of foci of epithelial keratinocyte growth in the form of warts on the skin surface is a very common dermatological problem. And many are interested in how to quickly remove a wart, and what available means and methods can be used to do this. [ 1 ]

How to remove a wart at home?

It should be remembered that a wart is the result of damage to skin cells by the human papillomavirus (HPV), which causes their more intensive proliferation and, thanks to this, multiplies, replicating its DNA into epithelial cells. Even in ICD-10, warts are classified not in dermatological diseases, but in the class of viral infections affecting the skin and mucous membranes.

Read in detail - Warts: causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment

If a dermatologist, after conducting an examination, has determined that you have a wart, he will recommend using external remedies at home, such as Imiquimod (Aldara), Tretinoin (Retinone-A), Panavir, Dithranol, Colchamine ointment, etc. All the details - Ointments for warts. [ 2 ]

How to remove warts on hands, fingers, feet, and soles is described in detail in the publications:

• Warts on hands
• Warts on feet
• Wart on the heel: what to do?

How to remove a wart on the face - on the nose, on the cheek or on the lip, read the article - How to get rid of warts

And detailed information about the means that help remove a wart on the eyelid, in the material - Warts on the eyelids

How to remove a wart in the anal area? Anogenital warts are viral papillomas, also called pointed condylomas. They are removed using the wart cauterizer Condyline - a podophyllotoxin solution that should be applied to the wart for three days (twice a day) and left until completely dry. To protect the surrounding skin from accidental contact with the drug, it should be lubricated with a Vaseline-based cream.

More complete information about the means for removing such warts in the material - Treatment of genital warts

How to remove hanging viral warts (papillomas) using external means, in detail in the article - Ointments for papillomas.

How to remove the root of a wart on the sole of the foot)? Due to constant mechanical pressure, a plantar wart is flat on top, and its lower part, which is called the root, goes deep into the underlying layer of skin. To remove these keratinized tissues, they must be softened, for which the most popular keratolytic is used - 15-30% salicylic acid, applying it to the wart and covering this place with an adhesive plaster - for three to four days. It is also allowed to use 15% hydroxyacetic (glycolic) acid, 20% trichloroacetic, pyruvic and formic acids, as well as glutaraldehyde and 15% formaldehyde. After removing the plaster, the softened wart stuck to it should be removed along with the "root". Sometimes, fine nail scissors or a scalpel may be needed to remove any remaining virus-infected tissue.

Parents want to know how to remove a wart from a child that bothers him or spoils his appearance. In childhood, a year or two after the appearance of warts can disappear without any treatment, for more details see - Warts in children

And when it is necessary, then the same salicylic acid is used (which is applied to the wart every day, sometimes such treatment lasts more than two months), the same ointments and solutions, the same cauterization of warts with iodine. And if warts have chosen visible parts of the body, they resort to freezing them - cryotherapy (but more on that later).

How to remove warts using folk remedies?

Not all folk remedies help to get rid of this dermatological problem, and many of these "traditional" methods can be classified as superstitions. For example, how can you remove a wart with meat, by rubbing it on the wart and burying this piece in a vacant lot? There is this option: warts are rubbed with bread crumb (necessarily stolen!) and then fed to wild birds. Or what is the point of wetting the wart with saliva in the morning, that is, immediately after waking up (after eating). It is also advised to move a straw around each wart (a separate straw is needed for each wart), collect them in a bunch, tie a knot and burn.

You can learn about how to remove warts with a thread and how to do it correctly from the publication - Removing a wart with a thread

How to remove warts with an apple

It is recommended to cut an apple in half, rub the wart with both halves alternately, put them together and bury them in the ground...

Perhaps you can do without instillation: The Journal of Biological Sciences in 2014 reported on the results of traditional medicine research conducted by specialists from the University of Medical Sciences in Tehran (Iran), which established certain benefits for the treatment of skin warts of sour apple juice, which contains a lot of magnesium. [ 3 ]

How to remove a wart with potatoes

All actions are similar to the procedure with an apple, but without instillation. Simply wipe the wart twice a day (morning and evening) for 15-20 days, allowing the raw potato juice to soak into the skin. There is no evidence that the acids in potato juice kill HPV. In addition, this “recipe” does not specify what kind of potato it should be. And the potato should be green on the outside, because only then does it contain enough glycoalkaloids – solanine and α-chaconine, which are toxic insecticides and fungicides produced by the plant.

How to remove warts with garlic

This remedy is considered effective because applying a paste of crushed fresh garlic to warts daily (for one to two weeks) helps to destroy the virus that causes them. Garlic's powerful antimicrobial and antiviral properties are due to the sulfur-containing compound allicin. [ 4 ], [ 5 ]

In addition, the following agents are used for cauterizing warts, as well as treating them to stimulate the lysis of pathological tissues:

• juice of the above-ground parts of the caustic buttercup (Ranunculus acris);
• dandelion milk (the juice released from the plant's flower stalk when it is picked);
• juice from the leaves and stems of silver wormwood (Artemisia argi);
• alcohol extract from the seeds and leaves of Genista tinctoria;
• juice of resinous milkweed (Euphorbia resinifera);
• alcohol tincture of smoke tree leaves (Cotinus coggygria);
• alcoholic extract of podophyllum hexandrum rhizomes;
• juice of unripe fruits of the fig tree.

Finally, traditionally, cauterization of warts with celandine (Chelidonium majus), or more precisely, its fresh juice, is used. It contains the alkaloid chelidonine, which stops cell division in the mitotic phase. But the juice must be applied as often as possible - up to 15-20 times a day, and the process itself can take two to three weeks. Also read - Removing warts with celandine

The question arises, how to remove warts with Superchistotel? There is no celandine juice in the product with this name: it is a solution of sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), sodium chloride (table salt) and a strong alkali - sodium hydroxide (caustic soda), which corrodes the skin. Therefore, this product is applied to the wart only one drop per day, and the period of its use is limited to three days.

How to remove a wart with acetic acid and vinegar

No one uses acetic acid with a concentration of about 100% (the so-called glacial); the use of vinegar essence (70% aqueous solution of acetic acid) should also be abandoned, since coagulation necrosis of tissues can be too deep. Warts are tried to be removed with a 30% solution of acetic acid, wetting them twice a day and letting them dry.

You can remove a wart with vinegar (6-9%) by applying a soaked cotton swab to it (for three to four hours), fixing it with an adhesive plaster. It is recommended to use natural apple cider vinegar, which can be mixed with fresh lemon juice (1:1).

Removing a wart with vinegar and flour is also easy: mix the flour with vinegar, make a small cake, place it on the wart, and then proceed as in the previous case.

The method of removing a wart with onion and vinegar is as follows: cut off the top of the onion and take out some of the pulp, pour salt into the resulting hole. When the juice appears under its action, it is mixed with the same amount of 9% vinegar; a tampon is moistened in this liquid and applied to the wart for several hours (fixing it with adhesive tape). This is done every day until the wart falls off. [ 6 ], [ 7 ]

How to remove a wart with a lapis pencil

The lapis pencil cauterizes tissues, as it consists of silver nitrate. A dry wart is lubricated twice a day with a pencil, the tip of which must first be moistened (with ordinary water). The duration of use is individual (up to one to one and a half months), but not very old warts fall off in half of the cases after three weeks. This method can be used by children and pregnant women.

How to remove a wart with hydrogen peroxide

The reactive oxygen species in hydrogen peroxide, when applied to the skin, causes oxidative stress in the skin cells (in this case, in the wart tissue), causing a chemical burn and subsequent necrosis.

To remove a wart, apply a drop of 3-5% hydrogen peroxide solution to its surface, help it to soak in (you can use cotton swabs) and let it dry. Dermatologists say that if this manipulation is carried out every day every 4-5 hours, then in 12-14 days there will be no trace of the wart.

But black cumin or kalonji oil - black cumin oil does not help against warts, despite its antioxidant and antihistamine properties. When applied externally, oil from the seeds of the Nigella sativa plant, according to the Journal of Dermatology & Dermatologic Surgery, reduces the frequency of psoriatic plaques, reduces acne rashes, and facilitates the healing of inflammatory skin lesions. But experts do not mention the removal of warts and papillomas with its help. [ 8 ]

Cauterization of warts

Warts look like flat, hemispherical or sharp growths of the epidermis. Usually, their covering is quite dense, consisting of flat cells, under which there is soft, easily bleeding tissue formed by keratinocytes. If the wart does not disappear on its own (and this happens when the body's immune system is strengthened), then if it is significantly elevated above the surface of the skin, ablative methods can be used.

These are currently practiced cauterization with electric current (diathermocoagulation) and cauterization of warts with a laser (pulse, photoselective, carbon dioxide, neodymium). These procedures are quite invasive and leave scars. For details, see the publication - Removal of warts. [ 9 ]

But today the most popular method is freezing or cauterization with liquid nitrogen. It is used quickly, but, as practice and randomized studies show, cryocauterization of warts is not effective in all cases, for example, it has ceased to be used for plantar warts. Read more - Removing warts with nitrogen [ 10 ]

How many cauterization sessions will it take to remove a wart? It depends on the size of the formation, its location, and how long ago it appeared. According to experts, after three or four procedures, the wart darkened, turned yellow, and fell off after cauterization in less than a quarter of patients. When warts were localized on the hands, they were removed in 63% of cases.

According to the standard of treatment, liquid nitrogen cauterization sessions are repeated every 2-3 weeks until a positive result is achieved; the maximum number of sessions allowed is no more than six. The use of a laser can give a result after two procedures. [ 11 ]

Possible consequences after cauterization of warts include damage to healthy tissues with their inflammation and necrosis; disruption of the integrity of the walls of blood vessels or nerve endings with partial locally limited hypoesthesia; damage to pigment cells of the skin with the development of focal hyper or hypopigmentation; formation of scar tissue.

What does a wart look like after cauterization with liquid nitrogen? The skin around the wart after the first procedure loses its natural color and turns white (from frostbite), and after some time a reddish tint appears, quickly turning into persistent hyperemia.

It is quite natural that after cauterization of the wart, swelling appeared around the place treated with liquid nitrogen. And if after cauterization the wart hurts, this is also normal, since during the impact on the skin, its nociceptive receptors are irritated.

Also, from a medical point of view, it is absolutely normal for a blister filled with serous exudate to form on the surface of the skin after cauterization of the wart – as an inevitable consequence of exposure to the extremely low temperature of liquid nitrogen (-195.8°C) and the release of liquid from destroyed cells of the epidermis and underlying layers of the skin into the intercellular space.

By the way, the absence of a blister after cauterization of a wart indicates that the coolant was not exposed to the skin for an insufficient amount of time, so it did not freeze as it should, and the wart – if its size is significant – is unlikely to disappear quickly without performing the procedure again. [ 12 ]

It is also normal when a few days after cauterizing the wart with nitrogen the blister bursts (otherwise the doctor would have to open it sooner or later). But you can't puncture the blister on purpose, but you can apply a soft bandage - so as not to accidentally catch it and tear it off.

What to do after cauterizing a wart?

The guarantee of the fastest possible restoration of the normal condition of the skin area and the absence of large scars is proper care of the wart after cauterization.

For example, when a blister bursts, its shell should never be cut or torn off: healthy epithelial cells are being formed underneath it, and the process of epidermal regeneration is taking place.

Can a wart be wet after cauterization? Until a scab forms at the site of the cryo-burn, exposure to moisture is undesirable.

How to treat skin after cauterization of warts?

To avoid the development of infection, you can treat the skin with Chlorhexidine or Miramistin, and creams and ointments with dexpanthenol, zinc oxide, Levomekol and other antiseptic agents are recommended for applying to warts after cauterization.

And finally. Those who have decided to get rid of a wart using the ablation method are, of course, interested in how often warts can appear after cauterization. Clinical statistics rarely record the frequency of relapses, and clinical practice considers the recurrence of warts as a sign of immunosuppression, since, let us recall, warts appear on all parts of the body when the human papilloma virus is activated.