by Gen Evera

Created on: August 18, 2008   Last Updated: September 25, 2011

Warts are transmitted as easily as walking along the side of a pool. If an individual with a wart walked along the side of that same pool earlier, he or she left their virus behind for you to pick up. Warts are a viral infection and they are in the same family as the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). There are over a hundred different strands of this virus, but for simplicity's sake we will focus on foot, hand, and planter warts. These are the most common and easiest to remove.

When looking for a treatment plan, you must first assess your situation. Ask yourself a few questions:
-What kind of wart do I have?
-How many do I have?
-What is my skin type?
-Where is the wart located?
After these questions are answered you can now move towards a treatment plan. First, most people start with the lightest form of treatment. If these don't work the treatment plans become harsher and more invasive. There are four types of treatment; home treatment, non prescription, over the counter, and professional treatment.

HOME TREATMENT:
The most popular home remedy in treating warts is, if you can believe it, duct tape. There are many success stories of duct tape treatment, but this doesn't work for everyone. The duct tape keeps all outside particles away from the wart and your own skin begins to moisten the tissue surrounding the wart. After months of treatment it is said that the wart will just fall off.

NON PRESCRIPTION:
A moist patch is a treatment used on a regular basis. It is similar to duct tape in that it moistens the area affected by the wart, and at the conclusion of the treatment the wart will peel off. Again this treatment takes a while and is not very effective for multiple warts.

OVER THE COUNTER:
Usually in prescription form, wart treatments are creams and lotions. These are harsh chemicals that kill the affected skin around the wart until it falls off. Again it is a long procedure (3-6 months), and is not very effective for multiple warts.

PROFESSIONAL TREATMENT:
Professional treatment is usually the last resort and is mainly needed for those suffering with multiple warts. When someone has multiple warts they continue to give themselves the virus over and over again, therefore the warts just continue to multiply.
1) First is the freezing method. This is when the doctor freezes the wart tissues to less that -200 degrees Celsius. This is basically freezing the wart off. This treatment is known to be very painful, yet effective.
2) Electrocautery is a second method in which an electric needle burns off the wart.
3) Laser surgery is identical to electrocautery in that it burns off the wart.
4) Strong chemicals are the fourth and usually last resort. This is a doctor supervised chemical treatment.

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