Dermatologist in New York, NY explains how to safely and effectively get rid of warts
Did you know that up to one-third of children and teenagers get warts? While they are less common in adults, affecting about 3 to 5% of the adult population, warts can be unsightly, embarrassing, and difficult to completely eliminate at any age. At SkinProvement® Dermatology New York, Dr. Stephen Comite provides personalized treatment options for patients in the New York, NY area who are ready to get rid of their warts for good.
How we treat warts
Most people think of warts as just one type of skin growth, but there are actually five main types of warts and the best treatment varies based on the type of wart, where it is located on the body, and its individual characteristics. Some of the common ways that Dr. Comite might recommend dealing with warts include:
- “Wait and see” approach in children: In children, warts are more common but also more likely to go away on their own without any treatment. A wait and see approach may be recommended for your child if the wart is not hurting or bothering them, and if it doesn’t seem to be multiplying rapidly to other areas on their skin.
- Freezing (cryotherapy): This is the most frequently used treatment for common warts in adults and teens. To be completely effective at removing the wart, multiple treatments may be necessary.
- Topical medications: Dr. Comite can prescribe a compounded medication that is designed specifically to treat your wart.
- Electrosurgery and/or curettage: Electrosurgery is a technique that burns the wart and can be done alone or in combination with curettage, where the wart is gently scraped off.
- Cantharidin: This is a substance that is painted onto the wart, which then triggers a blister to form underneath the wart that cuts off its blood supply and causes it to die. After this happens, you return to the dermatologist’s office where we will remove the dead wart. While this medication has been around for decades, it is no longer FDA approved; current studies are underway to regain FDA approval.
For more difficult-to-treat warts that have been resistant to the methods above, a variety of other options are available at SkinProvement Dermatology New York, such as laser treatment, chemical peels, immune boosting medications, and bleomycin injections. Dr. Comite will work with you to determine the best course of action for your specific situation.
Why should you seek dermatological care for warts?
When you or your child has a growth on their skin that appears to be a wart, you might be interested in trying an over-the-counter wart removal option at your local grocery store or pharmacy. However, we typically recommend against this type of treatment without first consulting with a dermatologist for two reasons. First, it can be easy to think that other types of skin growths such as molluscum contagiosum or even cancerous growths, are warts ; these will not respond to wart remedies and need to be treated differently. Additionally, when the growth is indeed a wart, over-the-counter treatments will often initially help resolve the wart, but it ends up coming back fairly quickly. This is because these treatments are not as strong or effective as the therapies that a dermatologist can prescribe.
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Don’t let warts affect your quality of life
At SkinProvement Dermatology New York, we make getting rid of warts a simple and streamlined process so you can stop hiding your skin. Call our New York, NY office today at (212) 933-9490 to schedule your appointment.
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