Warts are growths on the skin caused by an infection with the human papilloma virus, or HPV. Types of warts include: -- Common warts (often appear on the fingers) -- Plantar warts (often appear on the soles of the feet) -- Genital warts (sexually transmitted diseases) -- Flat warts (usually appear in places where one shaves frequently)  In children, warts often go away on their own. In adults, however, they tend to stay. Warts are often removed for cosmetic reasons or to eliminate discomfort.  http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000885.htm 

1. Fitango Education
Health Topics
Warts and Moles
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2. Overview
Warts are growths on the skin caused by an
infection with the human papilloma virus, or HPV.
Types of warts include:
-- Common warts (often appear on the fingers)
-- Plantar warts (often appear on the soles of the
feet)
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3. Overview
-- Genital warts (sexually transmitted diseases)
-- Flat warts (usually appear in places where one
shaves frequently)
In children, warts often go away on their own. In
adults, however, they tend to stay. Warts are often
removed for cosmetic reasons or to eliminate
discomfort.
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4. Overview
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article
/000885.htm
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5. Symptoms
The typical wart is a raised round or oval growth
with a relatively rough surface. The spot may be
lighter, darker, or black (rare) colored compared
to surrounding skin.
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6. Symptoms
**Common warts**
usually appear on the hands, but they can appear
anywhere. They usually do not cause pain unless
they are frequently rubbed against.
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7. Symptoms
**Flat warts**
are found on the face and forehead. They are
common in children, less common on teenagers,
and rare in adults.
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8. Symptoms
**Genital warts**
are found in the genitals, in the pubic
area, between the thighs, or inside the vaginal and
anal canals.
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9. Symptoms
**Plantar warts **
are found on the soles of the feet. These kinds of
warts usually cause difficulty walking or running
and can be very painful, so they are very
frequently removed.
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10. Symptoms
**Subungual and Periungual warts**
are found under and around the fingernails and
toenails.
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11. Diagnosis
A medical professional can diagnose warts by
looking at your skin.
A biopsy might be done to confirm if the wart is
not another type of grown, like skin cancer.
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12. Treatment
**Never **
attempt to remove a wart yourself by burning,
picking, tearing, cutting, freezing, or any other
method. **Never **
use over-the-counter wart medications on your
face or genitals.
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13. Treatment
**How to safely remove a wart**
:
-- Use a clean nail file (emery board) to file the
wart when your skin is clean and damp to help
remove dead tissue.
-- Apply the medicine to the wart every day for
several weeks or months. Be sure to follow the
instructions on the label.
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14. Treatment
**How to safely remove a wart**
-- Cover the wart with a bandage to prevent
spreading it.
Other treatment depends on the type of wart you
have.
-- Special foot cushions can help ease the pain
caused by plantars warts. These cushions can be
bought at drug stores without a prescription. Wear
socks and shoes with plenty of room in them.
Avoid high heels.
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15. Treatment
**How to safely remove a wart**
-- A medical professional may need to trim away
thickened skin or calluses that form over warts on
the foot or around nails.
Your health care provider may recommend the
following treatments if your warts do not go away:
-- Stronger medications, like podophyllin or
salicylic acid
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16. Treatment
**How to safely remove a wart**
-- A blistering solution
-- Freezing the wart (cryotherapy)
-- Burning the wart (electrocautery)
-- Laser treatment for hard-to-remove warts
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17. Treatment
**How to safely remove a wart**
-- Immunotherapy, where a patient is given a shot
of a substance that causes an allergic reaction and
helps the wart go away
-- Skin medicine called imiquimod
A new medicine called veregen may be used on
genital warts. Two vaccines are available to
prevent infection against the strains of viruses that
cause genital warts and cervical cancer in women.
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18. Causes
All warts can be spread from one part of your body
to another. They can also be spread from one
person to another through skin-to-skin
contact, but this is less common.
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19. Prevention
-- After touching any of your warts, be sure to
wash your hands thoroughly
-- After filing your wart, wash the file carefully. If
the file is not washed carefully, you may spread the
virus to other parts of your body
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20. Prevention
-- Avoid making skin-to-skin contact with someone
else's wart
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