Warts on the hands: causes, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment

Warts on the arm

Warts on the hands are mostly benign tumors. The appearance of this growth is related to the increased activity of the human papillomavirus. This disease is highly contagious and requires special and complex treatments.

Causes of warts on hands

HPV 3D model that causes warts on the hands

Warts are an unpleasant external manifestation of skin infections. The culprit is human papillomavirus.

How does HPV infection occur, causing warts on the hands to grow:

  • Contact information. . . In most cases, this pathogenic microorganism infection occurs through direct skin contact between healthy people and infected people. A simple handshake is sufficient. Because of this, the most common problem is warts on the hands, because the hands are the most contacted part of the body. In addition to this option, you can pay attention to the possibility of spreading pathogens when using objects and objects that have been touched by disease carriers. Therefore, you may be infected by relatives at home. Sometimes the virus will survive for a period of time on various wet surfaces, such as in bathrooms, changing rooms, public transportation, etc.
  • Self-infection. . . If a similar tumor appears in a certain part of the body, there may be a risk of self-infection. More precisely, it is the spread of the virus to healthy organizations. This happens when nails or various objects cause trauma to the growth. If the wound and hand hygiene are not carried out in time, it is easy to cause the increase of lesions.
  • From mother to child. . . According to this option, the child's infection occurred to the mother during childbirth.

It should be noted that sexual contact with a virus carrier is rarely the cause of warts on the hands. This mode of transmission usually results in another benign tumor.

HPV is highly contagious. It is difficult to avoid infection. This disease affects both men and women, including adults and children. In most cases, warts on the hands appear in children and adolescents.

It may take 1 to 6 months from the moment the virus enters the human body to the first appearance. Although only transportation was observed in some cases, the warts never started to grow. This is possible if the person's immunity is strong enough and the virus is not allowed to multiply and activate.

Therefore, HPV can wait for the right time for a long time-a significant weakening of the immune system.

All kinds of mental trauma, improper combination of work and rest, drug abuse, unbalanced diet, adherence to bad living habits and adverse environmental conditions will affect the development of the immune status in the direction of its decline.

There are many predisposing factors for these formations. Please consider the most obvious causes of warts on your hands:

  • Acute and chronic diseases. . . Any disease and lack of timely and effective treatment will significantly weaken the immune system. With the development of hand warts, the increased risk of HPV infection is HIV, eczema, psoriasis and so on. Even with the smallest cracks in the skin, the risk of the virus penetrating the epidermis increases.
  • Personal characteristics. . . Hyperhidrosis, that is, increased sweating of the palms is a predisposing factor, because it promotes the formation of special pathological flora and high humidity, which is a favorable condition for HPV reproduction.
  • Failure to comply with personal hygiene rules. . . It is very simple to explain the cause of warts on the hands without skin care. For example, dry skin can cause the formation of small cracks and irritation, through which viruses can safely penetrate inside. It is worth noting that if it is common to wash hands in time, infection can be prevented even after shaking hands with an infected person.

With powerful protection function, the body can deal with the infection on its own. In the best case, recovery will occur within 2-3 months. According to statistics, this accounts for approximately 20% of all cases. Sometimes the process of recovering by one's own power takes place within 2 years.

What does the wart on your hand look like?

Appearance and location of warts on hands

Many people want to know how to cure warts on their hands after discovering their skin tumors. However, before starting treatment, you should make sure that you have warts. For this you need to be able to distinguish these benign growths from other growths-corns, keratosis, lichen planus, and molluscum contagiosum.

The most important difference is that the warts on the hands and other parts of the body have small blood vessels. This can be understood by accidentally hurting the growth or trying to remove it yourself-bleeding of varying intensity occurs.

The color spectrum of benign and safe warts is diverse. The growth can be flesh-colored, light yellow, light brown, or gray-brown. Sometimes black spots can be observed on their surface-the place where the blood clot forms. At the same time, the tumor staining caused by human papillomavirus is bright brown and black is not typical. Any color change should alert the patient and go to the hospital immediately to determine how to treat the wart on the hand. Fear should also be caused by growths that become inflamed, fester and start to accelerate.

The size of the wart varies from 1 to 10 mm. They are a single group or a group of several people. Because the immune response is very weak, the tumor tissue grows rapidly. The growth of individuals can grow together with each other.

Any type of wart can cause hyperkeratosis-excessive thickening of the upper layer of the epidermis. This is why this growth can be easily felt; they stand out clearly against the background of healthy cells with a coarser and stronger structure.

In most cases, two types of warts will appear on the hands:

  • Common warts. . . They are also called vulgar. The favorite place for this type of tumor is the hands. It spreads easily to facial skin. The color is flesh-colored, yellow-brown or gray. It is on such warts that blackheads can often be seen. The growths are keratinized bumps above the skin. In shape, such warts on the hands resemble nodules or dome papules. Their structure is dense, the surface is uneven, there are small hairs, and they are characterized by increased tissue dryness. The size is usually 2 to 7 mm in diameter. In most cases, they do not cause pain.
  • Superficial flat wart. . . The other name is young. The back of the hand is often affected. Color-from pale yellow to brown. In appearance, they resemble round or irregularly shaped flat nodules. The size is 3-4 mm. Do not actually protrude on the skin.
  • Flat warts are deep. . . The second type of flat warts. The representative of this species grows inward. They are very specific formations. There are also irregular shapes, with colors ranging from pale yellow to brown. It is not particularly prominent on the skin, but on the outer surface of the deposit, there is a slight depression in the middle. The size of a single tumor is 3-4 mm. In most cases, it is deep warts on the hands that need to be treated. Usually, they produce quite intense painful sensations.

Warts are the source of infection. At the same time, they cause great physical discomfort to the owner, and form a complex on him, embarrassing his appearance, because the hands are almost always in sight. Therefore, even if there is no pain and dangerous changes in this growth structure, it is recommended to go to the hospital to learn how to remove the warts on the hands.

Ways to treat hand warts

Determining the cause and treatment of warts on the hands should be carried out by a qualified doctor, who not only has knowledge and experience, but also has various diagnostic tools. Therefore, with the help of laboratory tests, the type and viral load of human papillomavirus were determined, and the risk of adverse consequences was assessed. Based on the results, it is dangerous to prescribe complex treatments, which include not only medication but also instruments to remove the tumor. Self-medication usually leads to poor results or complications.

Treat warts on the hands with medication

The dermatologist is responsible for treating warts on the hands. Its main task is to suppress the activity of the virus and prevent the spread of infection. For this reason, antiviral drugs are used for external and oral administration.

The most popular therapies used to treat hand warts are:

  • Ointment for disinfection and antiviral. . . Local treatment can reduce the spread of infection through the skin, thereby reducing the risk of infecting others. Many drugs effectively inhibit the activity of the virus and slow the uncontrolled growth of tumors. They also help the rapid healing of skin lesions and relieve inflammation.
  • External means of disrupting growth. . . The active substance has an aggressive effect on growing cells, promotes their destruction and promotes the complete elimination of warts on hands and other parts of the body. It is advisable to use them inside the walls of medical institutions to avoid undesirable consequences in the form of damage to healthy tissue. In addition, we can notice spraying with dimethyl ether and propane. The drug acts on the principle of freezing destruction and effectively removes epithelial tumors caused by HPV.

It should be noted that there is no specific drug for human papillomavirus. However, some drugs can reduce the activity of the virus and prevent the growth of warts on the hands, feet, and other parts of the body. Therefore, it is worth highlighting drugs for oral administration in a separate column. They actively stimulate the immune system, help the body produce special immune cells, and can also produce obvious antiviral effects.

A popular drug with antiviral and immunostimulatory activity for the treatment of HPV with warts on the hands:

  • A preparation containing inosine. The powerful antiviral effect is complementary to the stimulating effect on the immune system. A comprehensive solution to the problem of different strains of HPV provides an increase in immune response and suppression of virus activity.
  • Synthetic analogs of purine nucleosides. This is a direct-acting drug, and its target is viruses, including HPV. The result of the treatment is that the virus activity is significantly reduced.
  • An inducer of endogenous interferon synthesis. The action is specific-it activates the body's defenses and triggers many immune processes. Accelerate the production of interferon.
  • Prepared with meglumine acridone acetate. Increase the body's resistance to the effects of HPV. Reduce the viral load and prevent the growth of warts on the hands.
  • Popular immune stimulating drugs. The increase in the immune response causes the virus to lose its ability to integrate into healthy cells, while its number is significantly reduced.

If the health condition is significantly weakened, then the doctor will recommend taking vitamin and mineral complexes to restore the nutritional balance and the performance of various structural units of the body.

After comprehensive treatment of warts on the hands, patient evaluations showed that the comprehensive treatment has a significant effect, and the recurrence rate is much lower than that of simple removal of epithelial tumors without the use of antiviral and immunostimulatory drugs.

Use instruments to remove warts on hands

Cryodestruction-a method to remove warts on hands by freezing with liquid nitrogen

If the wart causes discomfort, grows quickly and changes its structure, or is frequently injured, the affected epithelium must be removed. In addition, any mechanical effects on growth can cause bleeding, an increase in secondary infections, and the development of inflammatory processes. Therefore, it is strongly recommended not to remove the warts on the hands by yourself.

There are many modern methods to remove skin tumors with instruments. They are characterized by high efficiency. Most of them are considered minimally invasive. Local anesthesia ensures that there is no pain during the operation.

The most popular tools to destroy hand warts are:

  • Electrocoagulation. . . This method is very suitable for removing common warts that protrude above the skin level, although it also helps to remove deep epithelial tumors. A special device with a loop at the end can synthesize high-frequency current and simply cut off the accumulation. No bleeding during operation. The resulting shell leaves within 5-7 days. The scar after electrocoagulation will only be left after deep exposure.
  • Surgery. . . In most cases, if it is necessary to analyze growth samples and there are large lesions, it is required. Use a surgical scalpel to remove the wart on the hand. During this process, healthy tissue is usually removed. After the operation, the cosmetic sutures are closed for 7-10 days. After the tissue is completely healed, scars may be left. The cost of surgery is calculated based on the individual circumstances of each patient.
  • Laser removal. . . According to many criteria, it is considered the most successful method-minimal pain, high security, accurate impact on education. With the help of the laser, the wart cells on the hands were burned. The remaining indentations tightened after 2-3 weeks.
  • Low temperature destruction. . . Deep freezing of the tissue within a few seconds will cause the processed tissue to die. Under the action of liquid nitrogen, the warts on the hands began to whitish and thickened. The tissue around it will swell slightly and may turn red. After that, the wart body transforms into a bubble that can be filled with liquid. Within a week, it will decrease and retain a crust in its place. From this moment on, the recovery time of the skin is about 2 weeks.

The hard skin, air bubbles, and wounds formed by the operation should not be torn off. This can lead to infection and longer recovery time. In addition, due to these behaviors, unsightly scars are often left.

The cost of each procedure depends on the location of the wart on the hand, the number of growths and the total area of the lesion. In addition, different clinics can provide the same service at different prices, depending on the type of equipment used and the qualifications of the medical staff.

Treat warts on hands with folk remedies

Wormwood extract for home treatment of warts affecting hands

Many people refuse to see a doctor for various reasons and are looking for answers to the question of how to remove warts on their hands at home.

In order to eliminate warts and fight human papillomavirus, traditional healers use a lot of temporary means, food and plants. However, you need to understand that the effect of traditional medicine in the treatment of HPV is quite weak, so you should not rely on it, refuse to take medicine and professionally remove skin vegetation.

In some cases, the attending doctor may recommend folk remedies to supplement the traditional treatment of hand warts. The tasks are the same-maintaining immunity and increasing the body's antiviral activity, normalizing the nutritional balance, and local disinfection.

Recipes of effective folk remedies:

  • Herbal infusion. . . When cooking, take 25 grams of birch leaves, juniper needles, dandelion root, plantain leaves, chicory root and 30 grams each of nettle leaves, wormwood and horsetail. Pour all the ingredients into 1 liter of boiling water, simmer for 10 minutes on low heat, and hold for 10-12 hours. It should be taken four times a day, half a cup.
  • Herbal infusion. . . When cooking, take wormwood (10 g), birch bud (15 g), lemon balm (20 g), thyme (25 g) and juniper berries (30 g). All ingredients are mixed. When brewing, take 40 grams of herbal mixture, pour 400-500 ml of boiling water, soak for 1-1. 5 hours, filter and take. The received dose is calculated as 1 day. The treatment time for hand warts is 2 to 5 weeks.
  • Hand bath. . . The starting materials are tea tree oil (3 drops) and lemon juice (taken from half of the fruit). Both ingredients are diluted with 2 cups of warm water. Put it in the palm mixture and keep for 20 minutes. After the operation, the softened wart particles on the hands should be removed. The tool has antiviral effects, softens the skin, accelerates tissue regeneration, and fights pathogens.
  • Lemon pine mixture to treat warts. . . You need to mix lemon oil and pine oil in equal proportions. Apply the resulting mixture to the affected area 3-5 times a day to soften growth, have an antiseptic effect and accelerate the regeneration of healthy tissues.
  • Application of warts. . . Patchouli oil is applied to the antiseptic patch and adheres to the accumulation. Such applications can last for several hours. In order to speed up the treatment effect, it should be done 2-3 times a day until the warts on the hands disappear completely.
  • Wormwood Extract. . . Pour 60 grams of chopped hay wormwood into 250 milliliters of boiling water. Keep in a thermos for 2. 5 hours and filter. During the infusion, the gauze bandage was impregnated and the dressing was applied twice a day.

Sometimes celandine, onion, potato juice, lemon, kalanchoe, and acetic acid are used to remove warts.

Real patient reviews of treating hand warts

The man successfully got rid of the wart on his hand

The choice of treatment method is the prerogative of the doctor, but it is not superfluous to be familiar with the possible options for HPV treatment and the method of tumor removal before going to the hospital. Feedback on the treatment of warts on the hands left on Internet forums will help to initially evaluate the effectiveness of specific programs. We recommend that you familiarize yourself with some stories about getting rid of the external manifestations of HPV:

  1. "My child had warts on his arms. They immediately applied it with an antiseptic, but when they started to grow near the nails, the pain appeared. As we were told, we decided to use the safest and most effective wayRemove it-through radio waves. In fact, the son did not complain of pain or blood during the operation. The skin recovered very quickly. Then they also took an interferon-based drug. Now there are no warts. Up. "
  2. "I got these growths suddenly in some way. They were very sick. At home I tried garlic and celandine, but no results. They had to use a laser to remove them. The warts on my hands were very deep, soThe scar is very deep. It healed in about two weeks, and the scar is gradually healed, but I still drank antiviral drugs and immune drugs. "
  3. "But folk remedies didn't help me. They just started to hurt. I had to see a surgeon because a lot of soil had grown up. Fortunately, although the doctor did not severely disfigure my finger, he still sutured it carefully. AboutIt takes three weeks to recover. Now I take medicine and make decoction to regenerate the skin. "

Treating warts on the hands is a responsible job. Prescription and determination of the best method of destruction should only be carried out by qualified medical professionals to prevent the spread of disease and reduce the risk of infection in the surrounding population.