Warts are small, fleshy hardened skin growths. Caused by the human papillomavirus, or HPV, unsightly warts can spread to other parts of the body or other people. Fortunately, there are many ways to treat warts in children.
Let’s talk about five key factors to consider when choosing a wart treatment for kids and where you can go for wart treatment in Tuckahoe, NY.
Stopping the Spread of Warts
Because the underlying cause of warts is a virus, these skin lesions are highly contagious and even more so for kids whose immune systems are suppressed by chronic disease or medical treatment for cancer or other health concern. As such, once you see a wart anywhere on your child’s body, be sure he or she does not touch the wart on other parts of the body or other people, such as you, your siblings, or your classmates.
Additionally, good hygiene is critical to prevent the spread of warts. Encourage thorough hand washing, and change bathroom towels after use. Frequently sanitize hard surfaces, such as table tops and doorknobs, because viruses can multiply throughout the household even though they are relatively fragile. Entry into your child’s body is easy–through a small cut or the mucus membranes.
Choosing a Wart Treatment
Preventive hygiene measures are all well and good. However, to treat your child’s warts or warts, your pediatrician should determine what kind of wart has developed and if there are other locations besides the obvious, i.e., the hands, face, and feet.
In general, warts fall into four classifications: common, flat, filiform (stalk-like), and plantar (on the feet). Common warts are what we see most often in our pediatric office.
Many warts may be treated with over-the-counter salicylic acid in liquid form or the office with electric cautery or liquid nitrogen (freezing the wart). Sometimes, excision with a scalpel is the best method, particularly for hard plantar warts. Some skin doctors use laser instruments to remove warts and to kill HPV germs effectively.
The five key factors in determining wart treatment are:
- Location of the wart (plantar warts hurt as a child walks, and warts on the face or other exposed areas of skin are embarrassing)
- Warts can return easily, so your doctor will want to use a treatment that eliminates the wart once and for all
- How many warts there are (some kids have multiple warts in multiple locations)
- How long has the wart been in place (the longer the duration, the harder it can be to remove)
- How young the child is and how uncomfortable the procedure may be (cryosurgery or surgical excision can be harder for very young kids to tolerate)
So, in summary, these are the key treatment factors: location, the success of the treatment method, number, duration of the problem, and the child’s age.
Wart Treatment for Kids in Tuckahoe, NY
At Village Pediatric Group in Tuckahoe, NY, our board-certified pediatricians, Drs. McGowan, Bellevue, Kumasresan, and Hughes are highly skilled and experienced in diagnosing and treating warts and other skin conditions in children. You can rely on their expertise in recommending the right care and preventive measures, too.
To know more or for an in-office examination, call us today at (914) 771-7070 or request a visit for your child online.
