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While many warts spontaneously disappear, some people prefer to have their warts treated by a doctor, mostly because these warts are bothersome, spreading or of cosmetic concern. The goal of treatment is to eradicate the wart and in doing so, stimulate an immune response to further contain the virus. Less invasive and less painful procedures should be tried first. Salycilic acid. This removes a small amount of wart layer by layer until resolved. Cryotherapy or freezing. This destroys the most infected cells, but may require more than one treatment. [?]. Either alone or in combination with other modalities. This causes a blister that kills wart infected cells. Electrosurgery. Destruction with an electric current is appropriate for some warts as determined by the healthcare provider. Surgical excision. Rarely, removal by excision is recommended. Laser. This modality currently is not used that often, but still can be in certain circumstances. Bleomycin. This cancer chemotherapeutic modality is injected into the wart. It is very effective, but it’s painful and carries risks to the normal tissue surrounding the wart. Immunotherapy. Interferon has been used by injection. [?] can be applied to stimulate an immune response for the ward. Duct tape. Applied duct tape from a hardware store has also been proven effective. Retinoids. Using this topical, usually in conjunction with other modalities, is very useful.
