Irritating and unsightly yes. But the good
news is that warts aren’t cancerous. There are quite a few types of warts. Over
time, your body often will build up a resistance and fight them off. But it may
take months or as many as two years for them to disappear. In adults, warts
often stick around even longer, perhaps several years or more. However, some
warts won’t ever go away.
Flesh-coloured growths are most often on
the backs of hands, the fingers, the skin around nails, and the feet. They’re
small — from the size of a pinhead to a pea — and feel like rough, hard
bumps. They may have black dots that look like seeds, which are really tiny
blood clots. Typically they show up where the skin was broken, perhaps from
biting your fingernails. (This can also transfer the virus from your hands to
your face.)
Flat Warts are even smaller and smoother
than other types. The downside? They tend to grow in large numbers — often 20
to 100 at a time. They tend to appear on children’s faces, men’s beard areas,
and women’s legs.
Lasermed’s Alta van der Merwe explained, “When
treating warts with a laser, the light heats up the blood in the tiny vessels
inside the wart, thus destroying the vessels. Without blood supply the wart
will die and the wart tissue is destroyed. The laser’s heat also may attack the
virus that causes the warts.
“Because the treatment is painful, it’s
best to apply a local anaesthetic (EMLA) 1,5 hours before the laser treatment.
For best results, cover the area with clingwrap.
“Laser treatments are done with 3-week
intervals and numerous treatments may be needed depending on the depth and size
of the warts – sometimes two to four treatments or or more. Between treatments
you may continue with topical treatments such as Duofilm or Wart Magic.”
Some info and photo: webmd.com.
