Nearly 70 different forms of the human papilloma virus can cause warts. Warts can also be very contagious, especially in children. If the outer layer is broken, a new wart can easily move to another part of the body. A child can easily pick at a wart and spread more along their body; therefore treatment is imperative. There are several methods of wart removal.
Over the Counter
Often times, the human immune system will expel the wart. Twenty-five percent of warts are eliminated after three to six months; 65 percent are gone after two years; however, some people understandably do not want to wait that long; for those who desire speedy wart removal, there are over the counter solutions. The most common is the freeze-off wart package that can be bought at nearly any grocery store or pharmacy. Freeze-off wart packages works by literally freezing the wart using liquid nitrogen. This treatment usually requires you to repeat the freezing process once a week until the wart is completely gone. In some cases, the first treatment cures the wart; in more extreme cases, three treatments may be necessary. There are several brands of freeze-off wart removal; however, the brand does not really matter. All products contain the same active ingredient: liquid nitrogen. The second over-the-counter option is wart removal Band-Aids. These small self-adhesive bandages are treated with medicines that slowly kill the wart. Treatment time can range from two weeks to over a month; however, wart removal Band-Aids are much less expensive and cause no pain or discomfort.
Home Remedies
There are a couple of home remedies used for wart removal that would be great for children. The banana peel method works well. Cut a small piece off of a banana peel, rub it on the wart, then use duct tape and tape it in on the wart overnight. Repeat every night until wart is gone; results should be seen within two weeks. Another effective method is soaking a cotton ball in apple cider vinegar and taping it on the wart; after several weeks, the wart diminishes and goes away.
Doctor's Office
If the previous four methods do not work for your child, consulting a doctor may be necessary. At the doctor's office, the doctor will clean and numb the area of the wart. Then he or she will insert a thin, hot needle into the wart. This kills the root of the wart. The other method consists of applying a very concentrated amount of liquid nitrogen (unavailable over the counter) on the wart. This instantly freezes the wart. The wart may take a couple days to fall off, but at this point it is dead. These procedures for young children can be intimidating and should be used only after the other methods have failed to work.
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