How to remove facial warts – Getgarminexpress

If you notice a bump-like formation on any part of your body, it is mostly a wart. When the same thing appears on your face, it is called a facial wart. Even though harmless, facial warts not only make you feel really self-conscious, but if they occur around a sensitive area, like your eyelids or around the mouth, they may cause quite some pain and discomfort. Hence, it is obvious why you want to eliminate facial warts as soon as possible. But if you have absolutely no idea about what caused it or what you should be doing to eliminate this wart, then you have come to the right place. To help you understand this better, we spoke to Dr. Niketa Sonavane from Ambrosia Aesthetics to find out what exactly a facial wart is and its most common types to the various possible treatments and home remedies, so you know exactly what you need to do in case you are suspecting that you have warts on face.

What are facial warts
What causes facial warts
Types of facial warts
How to remove facial warts
Home remedies for facial warts
FAQs about facial warts

What are facial warts

What are facial warts? For those of you who don’t know, warts are tiny bumps on the surface of your skin and can occur on any part of your body. But when this growth happens on your face, it is known as a facial wart. Even though these are pretty much harmless, they extend out of your face skin by one to two mm, look like a big blister and can be quite rough in texture. The most common areas on your face where you can develop facial warts are the lips, eyelids and as well as your cheeks. Even though harmless, facial warts can still cause a fair amount of soreness, itchiness and skin irritation. Many times, facial warts develop a small black dot, which is your blood vessel being exposed and if touched too often, can cause bleeding. Experts recommend you to avoid touching a facial wart, as it is very contagious and can very quickly spread to other parts of your body. Even though these can go away on their own, it is always better to speak to a doctor and figure out the best way to eliminate facial warts. This is because, if left on their own, they take a long time – anywhere between one to five years – to go away.

What causes facial warts

Now let’s take a look at what causes facial warts. Warts are actually a result of an infection in the topmost layer of your skin, which is caused by a virus belonging to the human papillomavirus, or HPV, family. This type of virus can survive on just about any surface – cloth, wood, metal – and therefore it is almost impossible to determine where exactly one has come in contact with it. HPV can actually thrive and live on your skin for up to a year before it manifests into a wart, which makes it even more difficult to determine where one could have caught it. Since it is extremely contagious, it is advisable to not share your towels, clothes and other personal belongings with anyone else. People with a weaker immune system are more prone to facial warts.

Types of facial warts

Types of facial warts The two most common types of warts that can develop on your face are flat warts and filiform warts. Cheeks and forehead are the two most common areas where people develop this category of facial warts. This group of warts is usually seen in children more than adults, which is why there are also referred to as juvenile warts. Flat warts are mostly seen in clusters of small white bumps that resemble poppy seeds. They are usually pink, brown or yellow in colour and aren’t particularly painful. Filiform warts look more like a hard, rough blister and have a spiky appearance that protrudes from your face. The most common areas on the face that develop this type of warts are around your eyelids, nose and mouth. These can cause some amount of pain and discomfort, especially if you get them in a delicate area such as around the eyelids.
How to remove facial warts As discussed earlier, facial warts can usually tend to go away on their own and that usually takes quite a few years. This can be a major inconvenience, especially if your wart is in a delicate place like around your eyes or mouth. Even though there is no real cure for warts, visiting your doctor will open up a few avenues about the best ways to deal with them. Here are some of the most common remedies used by dermatologists –

1. Skincare acids –

Salicylic acid is usually the first line of treatment that your doctor will recommend. This method involves the use of applying prescription-strength salicylic acid to help in exfoliating the skin and get rid of facial warts layer by layer. If the salicylic acid doesn’t do much for you, then the doctor would recommend other acids too.

2. Cryotherapy –

For this treatment, your dermatologist will spray liquid nitrogen onto the wart and freeze it and then remove it slowly over a period of few weeks. The most common side effects of this type of procedure is blistering, soreness and slight discolouration, especially in people with darker skin tones.

3. Surgery –

In this treatment, your doctor surgically removes or cuts of the wart from the surface of your skin using a scalpel.

4. Electrosurgery & Curettage –

This treatment involves the use of an electric current to heat the tissue and thereby make the wart fall of your skin.

5. Cantharidin –

Cantharidin is a chemical that is applied onto your skin around the wart to form a blister around it. Once the blister is fully formed, your doctor would then remove it and the wart would come off with it.

Home remedies for facial warts

Home remedies for facial warts Since facial warts are mostly harmless, you can always try out certain home remedies to see if they work for you, especially if your wart is not causing you any discomfort or pain. Additionally, avoid touching the wart as far as possible to prevent it from spreading to other parts of your body as these are extremely contagious.

1. Garlic extracts –

Garlic is an abundant source of allium sativum, which has incredible antiviral properties. This helps in killing the human papillomavirus over a period of time and thereby eliminates facial warts.

Cover your wart with a clove of fresh garlic and seal it in place with a tape or bandage.
Repeat this process daily until the wart falls off.
Since raw garlic is quite strong, it can cause a slight burning sensation. While this is completely normal, if it is too much for you to bear, take it off and wash the area with cool water.

2. Lemon juice –

Rich in citric acid, research claims that lemon juice is one of the best and most effective home remedies to get rid of facial warts. Citric acid helps in killing the virus, which is how it eliminates facial warts too. But never apply lemon juice directly to your face. Instead, dilute it with either honey or water and apply it to the wart.

FAQs about facial warts

Q. How to prevent facial warts?

A. Here are the top five ways to prevent facial warts –

Avoid touching anyone’s facial warts
Do not share your towel, undergarments or makeup tools with anyone as far as possible
Keep the wart covered with a bandage or tape.
Avoid scratching the wart

Q. When should one see a doctor for facial warts?

A. It is advisable to get immediate medical help if you notice that your wart is either bleeding or is oozing out fluids. Additionally, if the wart is spreading to other parts of the body or is really painful, then you should visit a doctor without any delay.

Warts are so unattractive, even the word can make you cringe. They are ugly little things that can take the charm away from a beautiful face. Not the same as moles, warts are big, bumpy monstrosities that are caused by a virus. While they are unpleasant, they are curable! Ridding yourself from warts is a simple procedure that can be performed by a dermatologist easily.

What Are Common Warts?

Wart is skin outgrowths that are caused by a virus known as human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV infects the top layer of skin usually through cuts, lesions, and bruises. The skin in the infected area divides and grows to form a wart. In most cases, warts go away by themselves in a couple of months to a few years and do not require treatment. Warts can occur on any part of the body – face, fingers, genitals, foot, etc. and they come in various forms. People who handle live chicken, fish, and other farm animals are most likely to get warts.

What Causes Warts On Face?

There are many ways of contracting warts. Warts can occur among people of any age and gender. Let’s look at the main causes of warts –

The virus HPV can spread easily. An old wart can be spread to other parts of the body causing more warts.
You can contract the virus easily in an environment that is damp such as showers, swimming pool areas, and locker rooms. It is important to keep your skin dry and clean.
Common warts are often seen amongst people who deal with livestock and meat.
Plantar warts occur easily on swimmers’ feet. They are usually wet and damp, often scratched and broken by rough pool surfaces.
Warts are easily developed on cuts, closely trimmed/bitten nails, a hangnail, and scraped skin.
Genital warts can be caused if the region is damp and unclean. People who suffer from STDs will most likely have genital warts as well.

Who Gets Warts?

Warts are contracted by anyone, with some people being more prone to contracting the wart viral infection when compared to others. People who are at higher risk are –

Young children and teenagers
People who tend to pick at their hangnails or even bite their nails
A weakened immune system

Most often, warts go away without treatment, especially among children. A dermatologist should treat warts immediately when they start to hurt, cause pain or multiply quickly. Must Read: How To Get Rid Of Moles?

What Are The Different Types Of Warts?

There are many types of warts. Each one looks different and can occur for different reasons. Warts are classified into six types based on their symptoms:

Genital Warts:

These warts appear on your anus or genitals. They are skin-colored or whitish bumps. You can have genital warts without having any other symptoms of an STD.
Plantar Warts:

These are warts that grow on the soles of the feet and sometimes in between toes. These warts are different from other warts as they grow into your skin, instead of out of it. They are easily identified as they create a small hole in the bottom of your foot that is surrounded by hardened skin. They can make walking highly uncomfortable. Plantar warts can be prevented by wearing shoes near damp and moist surfaces.
Filiform Warts:

These grow around your mouth, nose, and sometimes on your neck and under your chin. They look like tiny skin tags/flaps. They are the same color as your natural skin color.

Common Warts:

These are skin growths seen mostly on fingers and hands. They have a grainy texture making them rough to the touch. They consist of clotted blood vessels and tend to look like tiny seeds. Often blackish in color, these types of warts spread very easily when compared to the other types. Untreated cuts and bruises, which often go unnoticed on the hands, are easily infected by HPV and can lead to common warts. Treatment is necessary when they start to multiply and become painful.
Flat Warts:

These are smooth, brown/yellow/flesh colored and flat-topped bumps that are the size of pinheads. These warts are very contagious but painless as they are benign. They can be commonly found on the back of the hand, legs, and on the face. Flat warts appear in large numbers.
Periungual And Subungual:

These warts occur under and around the toenails and fingernails. They can be very painful as they occur under the nails and prohibit them from growing. Periungual warts are commonly seen amongst nail bitters and in peelers.

Must Read: How To Get A Flawless Skin?

How To Remove Warts On Face?

Warts are easy to remove. Many cosmetic treatments are effective in removing skin warts. Let’s look at some treatments to remove facial warts:

Laser Treatment: It is a treatment that uses light energy to target a wart and remove it from the root. This burns and destroys wart’s tissue. Anesthetic cream is applied before the laser treatment depending on the size and number of warts. It has 100% success rate compared to other treatments. Laser therapy can be used to remove all types of warts, even genital warts.
Chemical Peels: The dermatologist will apply chemical peels with glycolic acid, salicylic acid or tretinoin acid to gently lift and peel the wart away. This treatment is used for common and periungual warts.
Topical Creams: Topical applications such as imiquimod, cantharidin, and retinoid creams are used on warts that small and new. These treatments take anywhere from 12 weeks to 16 weeks to show 100% result.
Immunotherapy Treatment: This treatment uses the patient’s own immune system to remove and fight warts. It is used along with other external treatments to strengthen the fight against this skin disease. It uses a chemical called diphencyprone (DCP) to kill the wart virus. All types of warts can be treated with this.
Intralesional Injection: Bleomycin is an intralesional injection used for viral warts when other treatments fail. It is highly successful for patients who suffer from immunocompromised problems. It is an excellent remedy for plantar and periungual warts.
Liquid Nitrogen: The easiest and simplest way to remove warts is to freeze them. Liquid nitrogen (Cryotherapy) can be used to freeze warts, which causes a blister to form under and around the wart. This helps to lift the wart away from the skin within a week. It is painful but highly effective. This treatment is most useful for treating common, plantar, flat, periungual, and filiform warts, but not genital warts. There are plenty of do-it-yourself kits available in the market, but its best left to dermatologists.
Warts Surgery: When all other treatments fail to remove warts, surgery is the last best option. The dermatologist will surgically remove the wart using a scalpel or a small, spoon-shaped tool, commonly known as curettage. They may even use electricity to burn off the wart, which is known as Electrosurgery. You may need an anesthetic shot before the surgery. Removing warts using either of these treatments can lead to scarring, if not done properly.

How Much Does Wart Removal Cost In India?

The cost of wart removal treatment in India is usually around Rs 350 per wart. But it may vary subject to skin type, area to be treated, size of the wart, underlying health condition and experience of the dermatologist.

When Should You See A Doctor?

Warts are highly contagious. They must be treated and covered when they are newly formed. It is necessary to see a doctor or dermatologist under following circumstances –

If you have an existing wart and it starts to change the color.
If it starts to expel pus or ooze some liquid, it is important to see a doctor immediately.
If you have tried removing warts using home remedies, and it has proven to be unsuccessful after 2-3 months of use.
The skin seems to be infected by many warts in short period of time despite treatment.
Plantar warts can make walking a painful process.
People with peripheral arterial disease and diabetes as they fall under the high-risk category.
Warts that are near your genitals or anus.
If you have a bacterial infection with symptoms including fever, discharge of pus, swelling, and tenderness.

Must Read: How To Find The Best Skin Doctor Near You?

Can Warts Be Passed On From One Person To Other?

Yes, warts can be easily passed on if left untreated. The virus present on the wart can be passed to another part of the body as well as another person.

Is It Possible To Prevent Warts?

Yes, it is easy to prevent warts. Remember these tips if you want to prevent warts –

If your nails or cuticles have warts, do not bite them as the infection can easily spread from one finger to another.
Some people can carry the virus with no visible signs of warts.
Avoid walking barefoot on warm and moist surfaces where the virus can easily grow. Wear footwear while using public showers, pools, and locker rooms.
Warts can grow on injured skin; you can prevent this by covering your cut/scrape with a bandage.

Will Warts Go Away On Their Own?

Since the virus causes the skin to grow rapidly, this can form a wart. Most warts do tend to fade away on their own which can take anywhere from a few months to a year. They can occur on any part of the body.

What’s The Best Way To Remove Warts From Face?

There are two methods to remove warts from face. Both are reliable and highly effective. The first method is using a chemical peel such as salicylic acid to gently remove the wart. This does not cause any side effects or scars. The second is laser. Lasers are very effective when it comes to removing warts. They are non-invasive, are carried using a safe procedure, and have shown 100% success rate. Warts are an embarrassment that you cannot cover, even with makeup. There are many options available to remove warts forever. You don’t need to hide your face any longer, nor do you need to resort to unpleasant methods to eradicate warts. Visit your local dermatologist to see the best option available to help rid your skin from warts permanently. Are you annoyed with the stubborn bump-like facial warts? These warts never seem to go away quickly or even easily. They take their own time to fade, and that can range from a few months to a few years. Even though facial warts are not that harmful, they may cause discomfort and pain. Opting for facial warts treatments may speed up the healing procedure and thankfully, there are multiple treatment options available. Today, we will shed light on what causes these facial warts and how to get rid of them. Scroll down to find out! Highlights:

What Are Facial Warts?
What Causes Facial Warts?
Types Of Facial Warts
How To Remove Facial Warts?
Things To Do After Wart Removal
How To Prevent Facial Warts?
When To Consult A Doctor?

What Are Facial Warts?

Warts are small growth of skin in any part of your body. When this small, harmless skin growth occurs on your face, it is known as facial warts. Facial warts have long and narrow projections. They can extend around 1 to 2 mm from your facial skin. It looks like a solid blister, and maybe rough to touch. Facial warts can be pink, yellow, brown or skin-toned. Usually, these do not form in a cluster. Facial warts can form on your lips, eyelids and sometimes on your cheeks. Many people experience itching, soreness and irritation. You may also notice black dots on your warts. These are blood vessels which can lead to bleeding. Facial warts generally go away on their own, but it takes almost 1 to 5 years. However, experts recommend getting treatment for facial warts. This is especially important, when the wart is large and has occurred in a sensitive part like the eyelid. Facial warts are highly contagious, and can spread to other parts of your body as well.

What Causes Facial Warts?

Warts are different from other skin growth as they grow much faster. Facial warts happen when you get infected with the human papillomavirus [1] (HPV). There are 150 strains of HPV and around 10 of them cause facial warts. The HPV strains that cause facial warts are rarely linked with cancer. [2] You can come in contact with HPV while doing the simplest of work such as a handshake or even touching a surface. But not everyone gets facial warts. Children and people with immune system abnormalities are prone to such skin conditions. People from professions like meat-fish handling are also more vulnerable. According to skin experts, the warts virus stays in the topmost layer of your skin. It can spread from person to person by direct touch, especially if you have cuts and wounds. You can also get it from the bathroom or areas like changing rooms. So, it is essential to wash your hands and keep your nails clean to avoid HPV transmission.

Types Of Facial Warts

Flat Warts	Filiform Warts
Flat warts mostly happen on your cheeks and forehead. They are tiny and look like small poppy seeds.	Filiform warts are different from other types of warts. They look like spiky blisters. They occur on your eyes, nose and lips.
Flat warts can form a large cluster. They are pink, brown or yellowish in colour.	Filiform can be flesh-toned, pink, or even darker in colour.
These are also known as juvenile warts as children get them more than adults. It does not cause much irritation.	If filiform warts occur on your eye crease or any skin fold, you may experience discomfort and pain.

How To Remove Facial Warts?

Medical Treatments For Facial Warts

1. Cryotherapy[3]

Here liquid nitrogen is injected into your wart to freeze it. It is not a one-time procedure, and will possibly take two to three weeks to complete the treatment.

2. Surgical Removal

This is the mainstream treatment and is often suggested for filiform warts. Your doctor will cut off the wart using a scalpel.

3. Electrosurgery & Curettage

This procedure uses electrocauterization (using electricity to heat the tissue) to scrape off the wart from your skin. These two techniques can be used together and as sole treatments.

4. Cantharidin

Cantharidin [4] is a professional treatment to remove warts from your face. It is a chemical that forms a blister covering your warts. Your doctor will apply cantharidin or a similar chemical mixture on your wart and once the blister is formed, he/she would be able to remove it.

5. Immunotherapy

When other options do not work, doctors may recommend immunotherapy. Here, a series of injections may be given into the wart, to stimulate the immune system to respond. Topical medication may be given as well.

Home Remedies For Facial Warts

1. Garlic extract

Garlic extract is considered to be very effective for facial warts. It has antiviral properties. Garlic extract is strong and can burn your skin a little. You may feel a little bit of irritation and itching. How to use: Take a clove of garlic and crush it. Apply it on the top of your wart. Cover your wart with a tape or bandage. Apply the garlic extract daily.

2. Lemon juice

Lemon juice has citric acid. It helps kill the virus causing facial warts. According to a study [5] lemon juice and water has proven to be effective for removing flat warts, if applied for over six weeks. But do not apply raw lemon juice directly to your face, as it may cause irritation. How to use: Take two tablespoons of lemon juice and add a few drops of honey in it. Lemon juice diluted with water will serve the purpose without causing any irritation. Apply the mixture on your warts.

3. Pineapple Juice

Pineapple juice contains enzymes that can burn your warts. Even though there is no scientific evidence of pineapple juice treatment, it has helped a few people to get rid of warts. How to use: Extract pineapple juice and directly apply it on your wart using a cotton ball. Continue using it for a few weeks before going to bed.

Things To Do After Wart Removal

Wash the area at least twice a day, or as instructed by your doctor.
Apply medicine or ointment prescribed by your doctor.
Keep the area bandaged to avoid any kind of tear.
Do not touch with dirty or unwashed hands.

How To Prevent Facial Warts?

Do not touch anyone’s wart.
Never share your personal belongings with anyone who has warts.
Try to cover your warts with a bandage.
Do not bite your fingernails if you have a wart on your finger.
Do not scratch or pick your warts.
If you have a cut or wound on your skin, try to treat it as soon as possible. An open wound can lead to warts.

When To Consult A Doctor?

Consult your doctor immediately if,

Your warts cause pain
You bleed or your warts secrete fluid
Your facial warts start spreading to other parts of your body
Your warts return even after treatment.

Wrapping Up Facial warts are harmless skin growths that can appear at any age. But they mostly occur among children and people with a poor immune system. Facial warts tend to disappear on their own, but medical treatment and home remedies can give you an effective and speedy recovery. Begin By Knowing Your Skin