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A wart on the wings, near the nose.

 
, medical expert
Last reviewed: 04.07.2025
 
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Today, various skin diseases and neoplasms are becoming more and more common. They not only cause discomfort, but also become the cause of aesthetic damage and external unattractiveness. For example, few people today will enjoy a wart on their nose. However, there are ways to eliminate it. But first, you need to understand the cause of its appearance, pathogenesis, risk factors and other associated pathologies.

Reasons

There can be many reasons for the development of warts, ranging from poor nutrition, lack of sleep, disruption of the daily routine and diet, and ending with hereditary, genetically determined factors. A viral infection, including persistent viruses in the body, can also be the cause. Most often, the development of warts is facilitated by factors such as herpesvirus infection, retroviruses, cytomegalovirus, and chickenpox virus. A filterable virus, which is transmitted from person to person through direct contact (when shaking hands, through household items that have been infected), can also be the cause.

The cause may be a violation of metabolic processes in the upper layers of the skin, as well as at the level of the whole organism. Some allergic reactions, increased sensitivity, sensitization of the organism, can provoke the development and further proliferation of warts on the body, including on the nose. The cause may also be a violation of the immune system, reduced resistance, insufficient endurance of the organism.

Often warts appear in winter, in severe frost, or in summer, in extreme heat. That is, when the body is exposed to extreme factors. Also quite often warts appear after traveling to exotic, tropical countries, or after staying high in the mountains, with a sharp change in climate.

Too dry indoor air, exposure to high and low temperatures, especially their alternation, can lead to skin diseases, including warts. They often appear during adolescence, pregnancy, or menopause, that is, they are associated with hormonal changes in the body. Increased psycho-emotional stress on the body, nervous tension, and frequent stress can also be the cause.

Risk factors

The risk group includes people with a high viral load, who have recently suffered from a viral or bacterial disease. The risk group also includes people with various types of genetic predisposition. People who have warts in their grandparents' family, including on the nose, are especially at risk. The presence of a persistent infection, hidden infections, and reduced immunity can provoke the development of warts.

Risk factors include prolonged exposure to the sun, frequent use of cosmetics, including sunscreen, and frequent visits to solariums. People who, due to their work, are exposed to various types of radiation, including X-rays, are also at risk. Most often, warts on the nose occur in radiologists, ultrasound diagnosticians, laboratory technicians, and neurosurgeons who work with devices that emit radiation. Also, risk factors include dusty rooms and dirty objects that must be contacted. Long-term exposure of the skin to dust, vapors, fumes, including acids and alkalis, can cause the development of warts.

The occurrence of warts is also facilitated by dry skin, failure to comply with sanitary and hygienic standards, small cracks, injuries, damage, and increased sweating.

Pathogenesis

The pathogenesis of warts is based on the proliferation or excessive compaction of the skin (connective or epithelial tissue). In this case, in most cases the tissue is filled with viral contents. Also, a wart can be accompanied by an inflammatory process. Inflammation most often occurs if the skin is exposed to some irritant. The inflammatory reaction is determined by the strength and concentration of the irritant, the infection in the body, which leads to the development and proliferation of tissue. In 90% of cases, the cause is a viral infection. Namely, the persistent in the body, or active herpes virus, cytomegalovirus.

It is also worth noting that almost always, in 95% of cases, the development of warts occurs against the background of reduced immunity, metabolic disorders in the body, or hormonal imbalance, including various hormonal changes, including in adolescence, during pregnancy, in postmenopause. According to statistics, in 55% of cases, warts occur in women, especially during pregnancy. Children under 7 years of age also often have warts, but by the age of 8-9 they usually disappear. Then they can form again in adolescence.

Warts have an incubation period. It can last from 2-3 days to several months.

What does a wart on the nose look like?

It has an unattractive appearance. It is most often located on the tip of the nose, less often on the wings of the nose, on the sides. A wart on the nose can be flat, almost unnoticeable, or it can be convex, protruding far beyond the surface of the skin. Often the wart seems to "hang" on a stalk, which makes it even less attractive in appearance. The sizes can be different, and most often vary from a few millimeters to several centimeters. The diameter and height can also be different.

Often they protrude above the body surface in the form of a tubercle with a whitish nodular edge. Sometimes there is a red border along the edges. They can develop not only on the nose, skin, but also on the mucous membranes. Most often they are localized at the opening of the nose.

The size varies from a pinhead to a pea. Sometimes warts can reach much larger sizes, especially in older people. As a rule, these are quite dense but painless growths. Only in rare cases can warts be painful, and then mainly in children. often represent rough tubercles or nodules. Their surface can be granular, sometimes papillary growths are observed. Sometimes warts merge and form large conglomerates. Sometimes such types of warts are mistaken for calluses.

Wart on the tip of the nose, on the wing of the nose

These are usually small growths that are quite difficult to remove. They can appear as a result of trophic disorders, as well as hypertrophy of connective tissue, subcutaneous layers. Metabolic processes in these layers worsen, which leads to thickening of the upper layer. It contains seals that tend to both horizontal and vertical growth.

Warts can be considered as independent skin defects that arose as a result of a violation of homeostasis (stable internal environment of the body), and as a result of exposure to external factors. However, the appearance of warts on the body can often indicate the development of internal diseases. For example, small warts on the nose can appear after a recent infectious disease, including flu, acute respiratory infections, and also against the background of reduced immunity.

The darker and denser the warts, the greater their number and area, the more severe the pathology. Excessive growth of warts is also observed during pregnancy, hormonal imbalance, excessive exposure to ultraviolet radiation, skin burns, especially sunburns. Warts on the nose often appear after prolonged contact with chemicals, inhalation of vapors (especially often observed in employees of chemical plants, enterprises). Also, warts often first appear after injuries to the nose, after plastic surgery, and during the aging period of the body. The pathology can be genetically determined.

The color of warts can vary greatly and ranges widely from beige, flesh-colored to dark, almost black. Usually they do not itch, do not peel, do not cause much discomfort, but attract attention. They can increase in size quite quickly, have mostly smooth outlines. They can be either single or in large numbers, evenly scattered over the nose and cheeks. When the first wart appears, you need to see a dermatologist as soon as possible. It should be taken into account that if any changes occur with warts, for example, they begin to grow upward, you need to see a doctor to check. You should contact an oncologist, since this may be a sign of malignant degeneration of the wart, the beginning of malignancy.

Flat wart on the nose

Flat warts often appear in women and girls who have been using various cosmetics for a long time, resorting to various cosmetic procedures. This is a protective reaction of the skin, in which its upper layer thickens. A wart is considered a defect in the development of the epithelial layer. A flat wart is considered safer, since it is more difficult to damage. If a wart is damaged, the risk of malignant degeneration increases.

In some cases, flat warts can be the so-called "mask of pregnancy." These are formations on the skin surface that arise as a result of hormonal changes occurring in the body of a pregnant woman. The progression of the process is facilitated by prolonged exposure to the sun, so it should be avoided. After childbirth and after the end of breastfeeding, warts usually disappear on their own. If they do not disappear, you can contact a cosmetologist for the necessary procedures to remove them. Warts can be genetically determined, including their shape and even the age at which they appear.

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Wart on a child's nose

Often, warts in children develop due to a deficiency or complete absence of vitamins A, PP, C in the body. Therefore, not only symptomatic treatment is important, but also pathogenetic consultation. It will help to determine the exact reasons for the appearance and development of warts, as well as to select the optimal treatment regimen, normalization of metabolic processes. Treatment is mainly local and systemic. Preference is given to medications. During therapy, vitamin complexes are additionally taken orally. Ointments and locally acting medications are used locally, which eliminate the inflammatory process and relieve irritation.

Also, warts in children can be a symptom or consequence of severe infectious diseases, most often of bacterial origin. For example, warts can develop after whooping cough, measles, diphtheria. This can be a reaction to vaccination, especially if we are talking about the use of an attenuated live vaccine. Warts can be a sign of metabolic disorders, the predominance of decay processes over synthesis processes, which is quite often observed in dystrophy. It can also be a consequence of autoimmune processes and the accumulation of endotoxins in the body (observed with internal intoxication, poisoning with the waste products of microorganisms). Often this is associated with excessive exposure to the sun.

Consequences and complications

There are various complications of warts, including serious skin defects, their growth. It often happens that multiple warts merge with each other, forming a single spot. Warts on a leg can grow upward. This creates a risk of their damage. If damaged, they can be injured, which is fraught with serious consequences, up to tissue growth. Also, the danger of damaging warts is that they can degenerate into a malignant skin tumor. This occurs as a result of cell malignancy. And of course, the main unpleasant consequence is an unattractive appearance.

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Diagnostics

In order to diagnose a wart, when the first signs appear, you need to see a doctor as soon as possible. Even if you are not sure that it is a wart, do not hesitate to see a doctor. It is better to prevent development or take measures at the earliest stages than to neglect the pathology. So, you need to immediately see a doctor as soon as you notice something suspicious. He will conduct an examination. Usually, the doctor first questions the patient, collects general information about him, anamnesis of life. The cause of the pathology may be hidden here.

Then the doctor collects the anamnesis of the disease, on the basis of which he can judge the features of the course of the disease, predict its further development and outcome. The doctor needs to know how long ago and under what circumstances neoplasms similar to warts or any other neoplasms on the skin of the face, on the nose appeared.

It is important to inform your doctor if any treatment has been carried out, how effective it was, what other measures were taken, and whether you tried to get rid of the wart yourself.

Then the doctor examines the patient. Usually, classical examination methods are used, such as palpation - the doctor will feel the wart and the skin around it. Palpation of the maxillary sinuses may be required. Percussion is also used - tapping the area around the wart, tapping the maxillary sinuses. The doctor also examines the skin surface for hyperemia, tissue swelling, and measures local temperature. It is also important to identify foci of inflammation, hyperemia zones, skin damage, and possible infection zones.

If it is impossible to make an accurate diagnosis and additional information is required, laboratory and instrumental research methods may be prescribed.

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Tests

In order to determine the origin and degree of threat of a wart, it is necessary to conduct a series of studies. In particular, a test is taken for a viral infection. It is necessary to take into account that it is necessary to conduct a study specifically to detect viruses in the blood and their quantitative determination. Detection of antibodies in the blood is irrelevant due to the fact that antibodies are contained in the body after the disease for a fairly long period of time, and sometimes for the rest of life.

This is due to the fact that antibodies are associated with immune memory cells. It is advisable to conduct a study using the PCR method, or polymerase chain reaction, which is aimed at identifying viral DNA particles in the blood, genome particles, which indicates the presence of viruses in the blood. Also, using this method, you can determine the degree of viral load on the body, that is, quantitative indicators, the concentration of viruses per milliliter

Also, in order to obtain an informative picture of the pathology, clinical tests are prescribed: blood, urine, feces. They allow you to assess the general direction of the processes occurring in the body. For example, clinical tests can show what kind of process is occurring in the body: an inflammatory, infectious, or allergic process.

It is also possible to roughly assume in which organ system the main pathological process occurs, what is its severity. For example, a large amount of protein in the blood allows us to talk about the development of an inflammatory process in the kidneys.

Based on these general data, it is possible to determine in which direction to move and what other studies to conduct. Thus, if the analysis shows a high content of eosinophils and an increased level of histamine, an allergic process can be assumed. Sometimes an increased level of eosinophils indicates the development of a parasitic infection, which can also lead to the development of warts, including on the nose.

In this case, if there is a suspicion of allergic reactions, allergy tests should be performed. It may also be necessary to analyze the content of total and specific immunoglobulin E, the level of histamine. A detailed immunogram may be required, which will display the current state of the immune system. If a parasitic infection is suspected, scraping, analysis for helminth eggs, some specific parasitic studies, bacteriological cultures, analysis for latent infections and persistent viruses may be required.

Blood, other biological fluids, and skin scrapings are also examined using microscopy, bacteriological culture, serological or virological studies.

If the disease has an unclear etiology, consultation with other specialists, as well as instrumental studies, may be required.

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Instrumental diagnostics

The essence of instrumental diagnostics consists of studying various systems and organs, and is aimed at identifying those pathologies that could not be diagnosed using laboratory tests and a standard examination by a doctor. Its peculiarity is that various instruments and equipment are used to make a diagnosis. The procedures can be both invasive and non-invasive. Using ultrasound, you can scan a wart and look at its internal structure.

Also, when diagnosing warts, it may be necessary to examine concomitant pathologies, study other organs, since the cause may also lie in a hidden pathology. Warts are often a consequence of a wide variety of pathologies of internal organs.

Thus, if a gastrointestinal disease is suspected (gastritis, colitis, enteritis, pancreatitis), gastroscopy, radiography, ultrasound, colonoscopy may be required. If a respiratory disease is suspected (bronchitis, tracheitis, pneumonia, pharyngitis), a thorough examination is carried out using spirogram, radiography, and functional tests. In case of heart and circulatory system diseases (myocarditis, functional disorders, arrhythmia, hypertension, hypotension), an electrocardiogram, ultrasound of the heart, and other examinations may be required.

Magnetic resonance imaging may also be required, which allows you to assess the condition of the skeletal system and soft tissues, identify possible pathologies at the earliest stages of their formation. Also, with the help of MRI, it is possible to determine the oncological process at the early stages of its development, and prevent the degeneration of the wart into a malignant neoplasm.

Differential diagnostics

It is very important to differentiate a wart from other similar neoplasms. Since the correctness and effectiveness of further treatment depend on the correctness of the diagnosis. First of all, it is necessary to determine whether the wart is an independent disease, a skin defect, or a consequence of another pathology in the body, for example, an allergic or other reaction, or a recently suffered cold, viral disease, or it acts as a symptom of another, serious disease. For this, laboratory and instrumental diagnostics are carried out.

At the second stage, it is necessary to differentiate between diseases that can cause such changes. Here, instrumental methods are mainly used; consultations with other specialists may be required. It is necessary to monitor how the wart develops, at what speed, intensity, what factors contribute to its development or hinder its growth. It is also worth noting that it is very important to identify the cause that caused the appearance of the wart, since it is often enough to eliminate the cause, and the pathology will disappear on its own.

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Who to contact?

What to do if a wart appears on your nose?

If a wart appears on the nose, it is not recommended to take any action on your own, since self-medication is always fraught with serious consequences. You need to see a doctor as soon as possible. A dermatologist can help with this. But you can also see a cosmetologist. However, contacting a dermatologist will be more effective due to the fact that he or she will examine the body and approach treatment in a comprehensive manner. By normalizing the internal state of the body, you can eliminate warts on the nose without much effort and prevent their reappearance.

A cosmetologist approaches a wart not as a disease that can be cured with medication, but as a skin defect that requires a careful approach to skin care. Cosmetologists often resort to wart removal, while a dermatologist prefers treatment.

If there is a suspicion that the wart is the initial stage of a neoplasm and is developing too rapidly, it is worth contacting an oncologist to check for oncological markers and cell malignancy.

If you don’t know who to contact, or there are no such doctors in the clinic, you can contact a therapist, who will refer you to the right specialist and prescribe an adequate diagnostic scheme.

Prevention

Prevention is based primarily on timely diagnostics. It is important to identify the pathology at an early stage of its formation and take the necessary measures. This will prevent the progression of warts and prevent their growth.

It is necessary to avoid excessive exposure to sunlight, use sunscreen cosmetics. It is also necessary to avoid direct contact with people who have warts. Cryotherapy, various masks and cosmetic procedures are good preventive measures.

It is also necessary to maintain immunity in good condition, in particular, to maintain endurance and good shape. It is important to exercise, eat right and follow a daily routine. It is necessary to consume a sufficient amount of vitamins. Plenty of fluids are required.

Forecast

If you determine the cause in a timely manner and carry out the necessary treatment, the prognosis will be favorable. A wart on the nose can be completely removed, both surgically and therapeutically. If you delay diagnosis and treatment, the prognosis may be unpredictable.

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