After you've been to the doctor and been diagnosed with some type of human pappilloma virus (HPV) infection that has caused an outbreak of warts somewhere on your body, you'll eventually get around to discussing the possible treatments. From simple creams and lotions designed to shrink or remove the food supply from warts and cause them to "die," ? to other, more sophisticated chemical solutions designed to burn them off, there are a variety of treatments available to the HPV sufferer today. It all depends on the location and severity of the outbreak. Outside the body, on the hands or the feet is the simplest form of warts to treat and, usually creams and lotions applied throughout the day are enough to make them go away. If they persist through the simpler wart treatments, there are more powerful chemicals available that starve the wart of blood supply, oxygen or other vital support, which will ultimately cause it to die. In addition, there are medicines that trick the body's immune system into attacking the wart itself and hopefully, succeed in killing it. If all else fails, and the location or severity of the outbreak warrants it, there is cauterization of the warts, freezing them and ultimately removing them surgically. At home, treatments usually begin with salicylic acid, which is readily available over the counter at your local pharmacy. This treatment is very effective, however, it can take several months to completely remove the offending warts, causing many to seek alternative wart treatment. Ultimately, home treatment, which can be as successful as any other form of wart treatment, is easier, less costly and less painful than many of the other choices. For those who do not like the thought of putting anything with the word "acid" ? on or in their bodies, there is the tape occlusion method. In this case, you merely put a piece of tape over the wart and keep it there, starving the wart of oxygen and light that it needs to live and grow. This is a slow but usually effective method and many people who have tried it have reported successful results. Finally, there is a brand of home freezing for wart removal that should be investigated thoroughly before trying. Essentially, the user takes two chemicals and sprays them together, holding the mixture, which reaches a very low temperature briefly, on the wart, freezing and killing it quickly. This method is not advised for children. |
