CHILDREN’S HEALTH: WARTS
Symptom
Rough, raised growth anywhere on the skin
Home care
- As a rule, leave warts alone.
- With the approval of your doctor, you can use an appropriate commercial product to safely remove most warts other than those on the eyelids or face.
Precautions
- At home, do not treat warts on the eyelids or face or warts that involve the cuticles or extend under the nails.
- In the surrounding skin becomes red or painful, discontinue home treatment.
- Most warts are harmless unless they are annoying, bleed often, or become infected.
A wart is a growth on the skin caused by a specific virus. Although warts may differ in appearance, they are caused by the same virus.
Warts can be spread by direct contact or by scratching. Plantar warts which appear on the soles of the feet can be contracted by walking barefoot where someone who has them recently walked.
For 67 percent of the children who have them, warts disappear on their own within two or three years; for 95 percent, the warts will be gone within ten years. Still, some warts must be treated. Plantar warts usually require treatment because they cause pain. Warts that extend under the nails may produce permanent deformities if they are not treated. Warts on the face and eyelids are removed for cosmetic reasons. All other warts are harmless and can be ignored unless they are annoying, bleed frequently, or become infected.
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