Removing a Big Wart

Getting rid of a wart is serious business.

If you're dying to get rid of an ugly wart, it's completely possible--but you need to be smart about it. Warts are the physical manifestation of a Human Papilloma Virus infection. If you aren't careful, attempting to remove a wart yourself can lead to skin damage and a potential for spreading the virus, which causes more warts. While there are several ways to remove warts at home, it's best to always consult with your physician.

Instructions

Medical Approahes

1. Make an appointment to see your general practitioner or a dermatologist. If a wart is big, you'll need to consider how effective different treatments may be and what risk there is of damage, pain and scarring.

2. Undergo an in-office, minor surgical procedure such as cauterization, cryosurgery or surgical excision. Basically, your doctor will either burn, freeze or cut the wart off of you. Cryosurgery has become popular because it's non-invasive. With a drop of liquid nitrogen, the wart literally freezes up and falls out, reducing risks of infection and usually involving little to no pain.

3. Receive injections or applications of immunotherapy medications for warts. If the doctor feels that one of the surgical approaches isn't appropriate, or you simply don't want anything as harsh has having the wart forcibly removed, then injecting the warts with medications like squaric acid dibutylester or applying a gel called imiquimod (brand name Aldara). These will help your body to fight the HPV infection.

4. Elect to get a cantharidin treatment. Your doctor will apply a paste made from extractions of the blister beetle. True to its origins, cantharidin will cause a blister at the site of your wart, which may actually be irritating or painful for awhile. But the blister lifts the wart off the healthy skin, allowing the doctor to later cut away the dead wart. When your blister heals, you should be wart free.

5. Self-administer salicylic acid treatments if you and your physician feel they can be treated at home. Purchase wart removal drops, plasters, gels and pads at your local drugstore. They're all based on salicylic acid, which softens the skin of the wart, deadening the outer layer that can then be rubbed away. This treatment may take weeks to months depending on the wart, its location and how stubborn it is. Keep in touch with your doctor.

Tips & Warnings

• Make sure to follow-up with your doctor which ever treatment you choose.

• Treating a wart doesn't mean that a new one won't return. People who have depressed immune systems tend to be susceptible to the wart-causing strain of HPV and often see recurrences.

References

• Mayo Clinic: Common wart treatment
• WebMD: Common and platar wart treatment overview
• Family Doctor: Warts