Warts are skin growths in the form of papules or papules. This is the most common skin disease, occurring in more than 90% of the world's population. Warts can appear on any person, at any age, on all areas of the skin, from the face to the feet. The disease is often contagious, it all depends on the person's immune system.
Causes of warts
There is a common belief that touching a frog will cause warts to appear. It's an illusion. The causative agent that leads to the formation of warts is infection with the human papilloma virus. According to statistics, this infection causes about 20% of cancer cases.
The risk of HPV infection increases significantly:
- when using other people's personal hygiene items and shared items;
- in public places (swimming pools, bathhouses, etc. ), especially when going there barefoot;
- in case of skin damage;
- increased sweating of hands and feet;
- when coming into contact with an infected person (shaking hands, having sex, etc. );
- wearing tight, uncomfortable shoes, causing friction on the skin of the feet;
- when using non-sterile instruments (in beauty salons, etc. ).
Are warts always dangerous?
Most warts are completely harmless and can theoretically disappear in a few weeks or at most a month. In this case, the patient is more likely to worry about a serious cosmetic defect, which causes psychological discomfort and interferes with a full lifestyle.
Warts are usually painless unless they are on the soles of the feet or another part of the body that is subject to shock or frequent contact. But there are cases of itching and discomfort in the affected area.
How to recognize warts: symptoms and signs
An inexperienced person may confuse warts with other skin growths, such as moles, calluses, melanoma.
Key differences between warts and moles:
- Moles are dark or black, while warts are light;
- Warts grow tightly to the skin, moles are separate structures, as if stuck to the body;
- Moles are soft and smooth to the touch, warts are hard, hard and rough.
It is also very easy to distinguish warts from calluses. When pressing on the tumor, there will be a painful feeling. If it peels off, there will be traces of bleeding underneath. Under the scar tissue is new, soft skin.
You can distinguish warts from melanoma by color and shape. This dangerous disease is characterized by heterogeneous red and black shades, proliferation, and irregular borders.
It is not difficult for a dermatologist to make an accurate diagnosis by visual examination. But a good specialist will not be satisfied with just a simple examination. He will definitely use a special magnifying device - a dermatoscope. If there is suspicion of a pathogenic process, scraping of the surface layer will be required.
In the case of genital warts (located around the anus and on the genitals), it is necessary to consult a gynecologist or proctologist.
What is the structure of a benign tumor?
The growth consists of cells that retain some of their original function and are capable of growing slowly. They have a similar structure to the tissues from which they originate. They can put pressure on nearby tissues, but do not penetrate them because they have a shell in their structure. They respond well to hardware and surgical treatment and, as a rule, do not cause recurrence.
On the skin there are always congenital formations - moles or warts, as well as acquired ones. The second type is formed on the surface or in the subcutaneous layer due to metabolic disorders, reduced immunity or under the influence of viruses.
Common warts (simple, vulgar)
Common warts are dense, dry growths characterized by an uneven surface that is rough to the touch, variable size, and a rounded shape. They look like a hard, keratinized bubble up to 1 cm in diameter, raised significantly above the surface of the skin.
The surface of a common wart often has grooves and bumps, which is why the new growth looks like a cauliflower or raspberry with black dots inside.
This is the most common type of wart, accounting for up to 70% of all such skin tumors. Simple warts can appear on the skin at any age, but they most commonly affect children and adolescents. This is because their immunity is weaker than adults.
Common warts usually appear on the hands (fingers and back of the hands), knees and elbows, sometimes on the face or feet, and extremely rarely appear on the mucous membranes of the mouth.
Scattered growths of small warts may form next to large "parent" warts. Young tumors are usually flesh-colored, over time they turn dirty gray or gray-brown, less often yellow or pinkish. This is due to their uneven porous surface, which accumulates dirt.
Raw warts are usually not cause for concern: they cause no unpleasant symptoms, pain or itching. However, they can cause pain if they are in the affected area or come into contact with clothing. Growths may heal on their own over time, especially if they occur in childhood.
Why do benign tumors appear on the skin?
Cosmetologists and dermatologists do not know the exact mechanism of their formation. Usually the cause is:
- injury;
- viruses;
- systemic diseases of the body, for example xanthoma, which occur due to excess fat in the blood;
- long-term skin diseases;
- exposure to aggressive substances;
- excessive exposure to ultraviolet radiation;
- X-ray;
- genetics (eg, seborrheic dermatosis).
Most skin lesions are benign
Plantar warts (thorns)
Plantar warts are a type of vulgar wart. Symptoms of the disease are most commonly seen in children and at the age of 20-30. Of all skin warts, plantar warts occur in 30%.
Warts on the soles of the feet appear as round, hard lumps with a papilla in the middle. Inside the wart, characteristic black dots can be seen - many small thrombosed capillaries. Along the edges there is a small roll of keratinized skin. The visible part, raised above the surface of the skin only 1-2 mm, can reach 2 cm in diameter and is only 1/4 of the total size of the plantar wart, mainly forming in the deep layers of the foot. epithelium (skin). ).
Externally, the spine resembles a callus. Plantar warts can be differentiated (distinguished) from callus by the obvious disruption of the skin pattern consistent with the wart.
This type of cancer usually affects the feet (soles, sides, and toes), and less commonly the palms. They appear on the skin as small white, needle-shaped, sometimes itchy lesions. Over time, their surface becomes harder and changes color - from yellow to dark brown.
Plantar warts themselves do not pose a health hazard, but when walking, they cause significant discomfort to the patient, cause pain, often more intense, and can even bleed. This is due to the location of the tumor and its growth characteristics. Because the spine grows inward, the weight of the body when walking will compress pain receptors.
The incubation period of the disease ranges from a few days to several years. The infection enters the body and goes into waiting mode for a favorable environment to activate. Plantar warts regress without treatment in 50% of cases. But this process lasts from 8 months to a year and a half.
If left untreated, warts on the soles of the feet will enlarge and multiply, even forming large clusters of tumors. This can even lead to a temporary loss of a person's ability to work due to unbearable pain that makes walking difficult.
Based on the characteristics of the lesion and its location, warts on the soles of the feet are divided into 3 types:
- simple;
- around language;
- mosaic.
Do benign formations mask danger?
Benign tumors are unpredictable structures that can manifest themselves at any time or not at all. The process of their malignant transformation has not been fully studied. There is no clear answer to the question of what exactly triggers this process. It is believed that mechanical trauma, excessive ultraviolet radiation, metabolic disorders and other factors contribute to degeneration. One way or another, if you have a benign skin lesion, you should not experiment and rely on luck. Moreover, removal today does not cause difficulties.
Warts around the soles of the feet
Periungual warts are small, rough growths with cracks on the surface, located on a person's hands and feet, specifically near the nail plate or deep underneath. In appearance they resemble cauliflower heads.
They can be flat, pointed or hemispherical. As a rule, periungual warts are gray, but they can also be flesh-colored. They are not as dense as simple plants, but have quite deep roots.
This disease mainly affects children and adolescents. The main factor causing infection is small wounds in the skin around the nails. At particular risk are people who bite their nails and keep stray pets, as well as those who carelessly remove cuticles, use unsterilized tools and work in water without gloves.
This type of neoplasia does not pose a danger to human health, it is mainly just an aesthetic defect. Plantar warts do not cause discomfort or pain when pressed. However, warts under the nails are not so harmless - over time, the tumor will cause deterioration of the nail plate and subject it to further destruction.
In addition, many different types of bacteria and viruses enter through cracks on the surface of the tumor, easily formed by frequent hand use, causing reinfection. Additionally, as warts grow, the cracks can be painful. The epidermis is often lost and inflammation (paronychia) tends to develop.
Removal of the tumor is necessary to prevent the growth of tumors that can easily spread to healthy fingers. Locating warts under the nail plate makes treatment and removal very difficult. When it appears in childhood or adolescence, it may go away on its own.
Where do warts come from - they are contagious!
Like herpes, warts are the result of a virus. More than a hundred viruses cause warts, most of which are HPV. Because there are types of HPV that cause cancer, some forms can be especially dangerous in terms of cancer, such as those that develop around the genitals.
No matter what the wart is or where it is located, never pick, rub or scratch as they can transfer millions of viruses to other areas of the skin where new warts can appear!
It is very easy to get infected with the wart virus. For example, infected human epithelial cells will survive in swimming pool water. They swim in the water and easily find their prey. The wart virus can also be spread through direct physical contact, just by shaking hands. The entry of viruses into the body is facilitated by small lesions on the skin.
In children, warts often appear under fingernails due to sucking or chewing fingers, causing pain and difficulty in treating. Children are very susceptible to viruses when playing. As a result, one in every four children has viral warts on their hands or feet.
Whether we get infected with a virus or not depends on how strong our immune system is. A strong immune system will prevent the infections that cause warts.
Mosaic plantar warts
Mosaic warts are a special type of cancer. They are plaques, or clusters, formed by the fusion of many small warts on the soles of the feet pressed tightly together. The arrangement of the plaques resembles a mosaic (hence the name).
This formation is usually observed in a small and localized area. It can reach a diameter of about 6-7 cm. In the early stages of development, mosaic warts look like small black punctures. When growing, they are shaped like white cauliflower, slightly yellow or light brown, with black spots in the middle. These spots are formed due to blood vessel thrombosis.
This type of wart is quite rare. They usually affect the hands or soles of the feet and are especially common under the toes. Unlike simple plantar warts, mosaic warts cause little to no pain when walking because they are flatter and shallower.
Mosaic warts are very contagious. They are very difficult to treat because there are many foci of viral infection. The success of treatment is facilitated by its timely initiation. As a rule, mosaic growths tend to recur even after surgical excision.
Benign and malignant skin tumors: what is the difference?
Benign diseases do not endanger human life. If they reach large sizes, they can interfere with the normal functioning of various body systems. In contrast, malignancy grows rapidly and vigorously, invading surrounding tissues and forming metastases over time. Some damage vital organs and cause death.
Sometimes benign skin tumors change due to external or genetic causes. They acquire the ability to degenerate into malignant pathologies. Such conditions are called borderline or precancerous, and pose a great danger to health and life, although they do not always have obvious symptoms.
Flat warts (juvenile)
Flat warts are a fairly common type of growth and cause the least amount of problems. They present as small lenticular lesions (several millimeters in diameter) or smooth papular lesions. They can grow singly, quite rarely, or in large numbers, close together.
There are several stages of the disease:
- mild – one or more painless warts;
- medium – from 10 to 100 painless growth;
- severe - more than 100 tumors.
If they are localized in places that are subject to excessive pressure (friction from clothing, shoes, etc. ), they will cause pain.
Flat warts are easy to identify and are white, brown, yellow or pink, similar to the color of the flesh. They are about the size of the head of a pin and are smoother and flatter than other types of warts. In fact, at the time the flat wart develops, the skin is slightly raised (about 5 mm high), forming a raised circular area.
Tumors often appear on the face, knees, elbows, back, legs, and arms (especially the fingers). People of all ages become victims of this disease. But it most often affects children and adolescents (20% of schoolchildren have this disease), therefore the second name of warts is juvenile.
In a close-knit group of students, 80% showed resistance (resistance) to the virus. In adults, irritation and inflammation after shaving contribute to tumor proliferation.
The incubation period of the infection can last up to 8 months. Most diseases are just cosmetic defects. Adolescent warts are not painful unless caused by mechanical pressure or trauma and can sometimes be itchy but are highly contagious.
The virus is not actually transmitted through shared objects, the main route of infection is skin contact. Flat warts multiply so easily that just touching a healthy part of the body can cause a new wart to form.
The peculiarity of this type of warts is that in most cases no treatment is required: they can disappear as suddenly as they appeared, especially in children. In adults, the disease must be treated and the virus is highly resistant to medication.
Spread warts through direct contact
Minor trauma or abrasion leads to dysfunction in the epithelial barrier and subsequent loss of skin integrity, opening the way for viral infection and wart formation. The incubation period ranges from 3 weeks to 8 months after exposure. In most cases, spontaneous regression is observed.
Laser wart removal
Nowadays, laser surgery is one of the best ways to remove warts. This is a painless and safe procedure that can be used in areas of maximum sensitivity. Laser tumor removal is very effective: the possibility of recurrence is minimal. This is significantly influenced by the severity of the disease.
Warts are removed by burning each layer of the affected area, allowing the doctor to control the depth of the effect. At the same time, the laser beam burns blood vessels, thereby preventing bleeding at the site of contact.
Three laser coagulation methods are common:
- Carbon dioxide (CO2) laser. Procedures using this laser will be more painful. Although the CO2 laser seals blood vessels, it also destroys wart tissue. During this process, there is the potential for damage to healthy tissues. Wound healing often takes longer and scars may form. Efficiency is about 70%.
- Erbium laser. It is characterized by shorter wavelengths. The possibility of scar formation after healing is significantly reduced.
- Pulsed dye laser. This laser will seal the blood vessels that feed the wart more effectively. It does not damage as much healthy tissue as a CO2 laser. This is also the only type of laser approved for use in children. The effectiveness of this treatment is about 95%.
| Favorable | errors |
| Minimal possibility of scar formation (depending on the degree of bypass pathology) | Expensive |
| Fast tissue healing | |
| High efficiency of the method | |
| Minimal damage to healthy tissues | |
| Speed of procedure |
Wart removal is performed under local anesthesia. A crust remains at the site of the burn, which disappears within 14 days. After the procedure, the patient quickly returns to his normal lifestyle, provided that all the doctor's recommendations are followed.
Treatment of fibrous papillomas
In 90% of cases, filiform warts do not heal on their own (for example, juvenile warts or childhood vulgar warts may heal on their own).
They need treatment. Especially if these lineups are injured.
For example, if the papilloma is on the neck, it can be injured by a necklace or clothing collar. If on the face - from glasses, under the chest - from a bra. You should be aware that such permanent damage can lead to inflammation and pain of this formation.
Official treatment methods and methods
Removing filiform warts with a laser - read a detailed article on how to remove them with a laser.
The simplest and fastest but inexpensive way to treat this type of papilloma. The doctor directs the laser beam into the area of skin formation, vaporizing and burning the skin. First you should numb the skin with novocaine so that the patient does not feel pain. And wear safety glasses on your eyes.
The entire procedure takes no more than 1 minute per wart. As a result, the wound has a small scab. After 3-5 days, this crust falls off and clean and healthy skin forms in this place.
Radiofrequency removal - read the article about radiofrequency surgery.
The principle of operation is as follows: a radio wave surgical device ("Surgitron") generates high-frequency radio waves, which destroy the wart tissue in the same way as a laser, i. e. vaporize the tissue.
The entire procedure is performed in the same sequence as laser treatments - first local anesthesia (required! ), then exposure for 1 - 2 minutes (it all depends on the size of thethe tumor is removed). The consequences of radiofrequency treatment are exactly the same as those of laser.
Removal of fibrous papillomas with liquid nitrogen - read information about liquid nitrogen.
This method is popular because of its simplicity. No need to anesthetize the skin by injection, no need for a doctor's presence. This procedure can be performed by any nurse or cosmetic clinic staff member.
Principle of operation: liquid nitrogen, with a temperature of minus 195 degrees, freezes wart tissue. The doctor or nurse, by determining the dose acting on the skin over time, will not allow frostbite to occur in neighboring healthy skin areas around the pathological formation.
After the procedure is completed, in 90% of cases, the papilloma will disappear on its own within 3-4 days.
Electrocautery of filiform warts.
Today, this method is less used because it causes more trauma. The papillomas are removed with an electric knife. In this case, burns and wounds are formed on the skin, which then take longer to heal.
Remove with a radio knife
The most effective modern method of removing warts is removal using radio waves. First of all, this is because in this procedure the instruments do not come into contact with the patient's body: they are generated at radio frequency.
Other advantages of radiofrequency wart removal to note:
- completely painless;
- speed of procedure;
- eliminates edema and infiltrates;
- no complications after surgery;
- There is no scar at the site of wart removal;
- Quick recovery time.
This procedure is also performed under local anesthesia. After exposure, a crust forms on the affected skin and disappears spontaneously within 7-10 days.
Prevention of skin tumors
Unfortunately, medicine has not yet learned how to prevent the appearance of various forms on the skin. But dermatologists give their patients the following preventive recommendations:
- do not delay contacting your doctor if a lump appears on your skin;
- Remove formations only after a specialist and diagnostician confirm their benign nature;
- Avoid too much exposure to the sun;
- Use sunscreen, especially if you are prone to moles and hyperpigmentation;
- no exposure to chemically active and carcinogenic substances;
- Do not eat foods that contribute to the development of cancer (smoked meat, sausages, animal fats, meat products with food stabilizers).