Not all warts are alike: Effective treatment for this common concern starts with an evaluation in New York, NY

There are many different types of warts. Plus, warts can resemble a number of other conditions. So, it’s essential to trust your skin health and appearance to a Board-Certified dermatologist adept at diagnosing warts and similar-looking conditions. From there, Dr. Stephen L. Comite can determine effective treatments for warts in New York, NY, at SkinProvement Dermatology, New York.

Dr. Comite wrote about dermatology conditions of the foot in athletes termed “Sports Dermatology of the Foot and Ankle” in the first-ever book of its kind, “Foot and Ankle Sports Medicine.” He has also co-authored articles on warts published in peer-reviewed journals.

“Common” warts

Symptoms: Flesh-colored, white, pink, and tan bumps that are rough to the touch and maybe sprinkled with seed-like dark dots (clotted blood vessels); may look similar to skin cancers such as squamous cell carcinomas.

Treatment: For some stubborn or painful warts, Dr. Comite may recommend using cryotherapy to freeze off the wart. Applied medications can remove the wart in layers; bothersome tissue can be surgically removed or scraped off or injected with medications to help your immune system battle warts. Topical medications, as well as home remedies, may be discussed. Persistent warts can be treated with a laser or injected with stronger medications such as bleomycin.

Foot warts

Symptoms: Callused skin on the bottoms of the feet, from the base of the toes to the forefoot and heel that can grow in clusters and cause pain (which feels like a pebble in your shoe) and may resemble other types of foot conditions such as calluses or corns.

Treatment: Dr. Comite can discuss non-prescription and home remedies or recommend some of the treatments mentioned above. Medications or solutions can also be used to boost your immunity, so your body is better able to fend off warts caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV).

Flat wart

Symptoms: Smaller and smoother than other warts, flat warts tend to grow en masse – dozens at a time, commonly on the face, and they can sometimes look similar to acne or skin tags.

Treatment: While flat warts can go away without treatment, there may be options to speed up the process. Prescription cream or freezing or surgical treatments may be recommended.

Filiform warts

Symptoms: These distinctive growths tend to have long, thread-like, or finger-like projections that grow rapidly and, when present in skin folds, they may itch, bleed, and cause irritation

Treatment: Topical remedies or removal by scraping, shaving, or freezing off the wart may again be recommended in these cases. We can also discuss laser treatments, injectables, and immunotherapy should warts not respond to other treatment options.

Prevention is also important to stop new warts from forming. Schedule your consultation with Dr. Comite by calling (212) 933-9490 or clicking the “book an appointment” option on this website. A visual inspection of the wart can tell us a lot about the nature of your concern; however, he may biopsy a small amount of tissue to confirm that the lesion is a wart and not something else.

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