A wart on the finger is a benign neoplasm that has a viral nature. The causative agent provoking the appearance of such growths is the human papillomavirus. Warts are considered safe formations, because. they rarely cause cancer. However, this fact does not mean that treatment is not required at all. This article provides detailed information on the etiology of the disease, external signs and modern methods of treatment.
Causes of warts on the finger
Warts are not uncommon, because. the human papillomavirus that causes its growth is highly contagious and spares neither adults nor children. The causative agent, getting on the skin, is introduced into the tissues through the slightest damage and remains in the body forever. At the same time, different levels of viral load are observed at different times, e. g. the population of the microorganism increases or decreases. For a long time, the disease can be asymptomatic. The incubation period can vary greatly in each case and ranges from 1-6 months to several years. All this, undoubtedly, affects the nature of external manifestations. So, an increase in the activity of the virus causes those same warts to appear on the fingers, toes, knees and other areas of the skin.
The safest way to get infected is direct contact with an already infected person. HPV is often sexually transmitted, so unprotected sex or promiscuous sex is the most likely cause of the increased incidence. However, most often the growth of warts on the fingers is caused precisely by the contact of the upper limbs with infected surfaces, whether it be the hands of a virus carrier or objects that have just been used: a pen, cutlery, a towel , a book, etc. All public places are considered places of greatest danger, but above all those where there is a high level of humidity.
Even a mother's baby can be infected. This happens during childbirth.
With the localization of warts on the fingers, the risk of self-infection increases, i. e. rapid spread of infection to the face and other parts of the body. The reason for this is the susceptibility of the growths to frequent injuries, which lead to the release of a large amount of the pathogen to the surface, and the fact that the fingers are in contact with all other integuments of the skin and can transfer the virus to They.
The reality is that the answer to the question of why warts appear on the fingers is rather ambiguous and involves many provoking factors. First, the development of a viral infection is facilitated by a decrease in the immune status of an infected person, when the body becomes unable to resist the activity of the virus, maintain its population at the same level and prevent the uncontrolled growth of epithelial cells in the form of a wart on the finger or other parts of the body. Here, too, everything is ambiguous, because the decrease in immunity also has a number of reasons. This is an unbalanced diet, drug abuse, bad habits and emotional and physical overload.
What else causes warts on fingers? Various acute and chronic diseases, such as severe colds, diabetes mellitus, HIV, venereal disease, skin disease, etc. , They lead to the activation of the pathogen. An individual feature such as hyperhidrosis or increased sweating also stimulates the development of pathogenic microflora.
Lack of daily care and lack of personal hygiene also allow HPV to infect more and more areas of the skin. Unwashed hands, untreated wounds, dehydrated and weathered skin, nail biting and drooling can all be causes of warts on the fingers.
What do warts on fingers look like?
Most people confuse warts with other skin growths such as calluses, lichen planus, keratosis, molluscum contagiosum and often choose the wrong treatment options themselves or completely ignore the outward manifestations of the disease, exposing themselves to the risk of spreading the infection, etc. the risk of infection.
In order not to make such mistakes, it is better to study in detail what warts look like on the finger, what they are like, and go to the hospital in a timely manner in order to make an accurate diagnosis and determine an effective treatment regimen.
Benign epithelial changes caused by HPV have a capillary network that nourishes their cells. For this reason, when the integrity of the growth is damaged, very often minor bleeding occurs, which increases the risk of spreading infection and wound infection. This is partly why attempting to cut away these hardened tissues is highly discouraged.
Warts first appear in a single amount, just one or two. But due to problems in the functioning of the immune system, more and more formations can appear. Sometimes they even merge together, thus forming an extensive skin lesion.
It is worth considering that a rapidly growing focus indicates a strong activity of the pathogen and provokes an urgent trip to the doctor. It is also worth going to the hospital to find out how to treat warts on the fingers in cases where the neoplasm begins to darken or redden, if there is a visible change in its structure and swelling, suppuration appears, or there is an arbitrary removal of the pathological fluid from the growth body.
Color warts can be yellowish, skin tone, gray-brown. In some cases, black dots are visible on the surface - these are just places where thrombosis of small blood vessels has occurred.
The most common types of warts on the finger are as follows:
- Common warts. The middle name is ordinary. Most often they appear not only on the inside of the palm, but also on the entire surface of the fingers, sometimes they affect the periungual space, where the skin is subjected to tension and burrs. Flesh-colored formations are more common, but yellowish-brown or grayish ones are also found. The shape is nodular or domed. 2-7 mm in diameter. The structure of the accumulation is quite dense and slightly rough. It is drier than healthy skin. It can break and cause pain.
- Superficial flat warts. Their surface only slightly protrudes above the skin. The shape is rounded, although as they widen and merge, there are also growths with an irregular outline. The color can be both brown and pale yellow. The diameter of a flat wart on the finger is from 3 to 4 mm. Their presence on the skin is very often not accompanied by pain.
- Deep flat warts. This type of skin formation often causes pain due to its structure. Outside the skin, the growths look flat with a slight indentation in the center, but their root grows deeper into the dermis layers. This, of course, causes significant daily discomfort, which more often than other reasons makes a person go to the doctor. The shape of deep formations is irregular, the color and size are usually the same as those of superficial warts.
- Subungual warts. The name was not chosen at random. Such growths occur precisely in the area under the free edge of the nail plate. At first the wart on the finger is flat and has a smooth surface, then it becomes rough and keratinized. With low activity of the virus, they practically do not give symptoms, but with a significant weakening of health and the absence of proper hygienic treatment, they grow, penetrating into the tissues under the nail, causing the plate to be rejected from the nail bed. In this case we can no longer speak only of an aesthetic defect. Pain and suppuration appear, gradually the formation reaches the matrix and irrevocably destroys it.
Many believe that treatment of such an ailment is not mandatory if you try to strengthen the immune system so that the body can cope on its own. However, this view is largely incorrect. After all, there are many reasons for the need to treat warts on the fingers and other parts of the body. Firstly, such neoplasms are quite contagious, and one person with even one wart can infect several healthy people, in whom the disease can manifest itself in a more severe form. Secondly, many children, adolescents and adults are simply very embarrassed by the presence of such skin formations, which, of course, causes a desire to find an effective way to remove a wart on a finger. What can we say about pain, susceptibility to injury and the danger of the oncological process.
Ways to treat warts on the finger
Modern medicine knows many effective ways to remove a wart on a finger. Each of them has both advantages and disadvantages and should be used only as prescribed by a doctor and in combination with drug therapy, since simple removal of growths by any method does not suppress viral activity and does not guarantee the absence of recurrence of the disease in the near future.
Removal of warts on fingers in clinic
At an appointment with a dermatologist, a detailed diagnosis is made, the results of which, in addition to the main health indicators, determine the strain of the virus that caused the disease, as well as the risk of developing an oncological process. Tests for concomitant diseases, such as HIV, may often be requested, which can also cause warts on the finger and aggravate the course of the disease.
As a result, multilateral treatment is prescribed. It includes the excision of growths by one of the modern instrumental methods, among which are:
- Laser removal. The most popular method. It is offered by almost all clinics. Special equipment allows you to burn an epithelial tumor almost painlessly, preventing bleeding. The healing time of scabs is minimal. Tissues after such exposure are quickly restored, so there are practically no traces in the form of scars on the skin.
- radio wave removal. The method relies on the strength of radio waves, which simply cut the growths without bleeding. With the help of a radio knife, you can remove warts on your fingers, practically without touching healthy tissue. The procedure is quite expensive, but is recognized as highly effective and safe.
- Electrocoagulation. The acting force is a current of various frequencies. It cauterizes the wart cells on your finger in seconds. At the same time, the vessels are sealed, which prevents bleeding.
- Surgical way.It is not performed without local anesthesia, because. removal is done with a scalpel. Less frequently named than other options. The main indication is a large lesion, if it is necessary to take material for histological examination, as well as the presence of deep growths in the skin and under the nail plate. During the procedure, healthy tissue is often injured. After healing, scars often remain. The price of the surgical intervention is calculated individually in each individual case.
- Cryotherapy. Widely used method. The body of the wart on the finger is blasted off by exposure to liquid nitrogen at extremely low temperatures. This option is characterized by good performance, painlessness, no need for local anesthesia. However, during the recovery period - about 7-10 days - it is necessary to follow all the doctor's recommendations so that the treated areas heal quickly and without problems.
- Chemical method. Removing a wart on a finger is done using harsh chemicals, such as trichloroacetic acid. It is better to entrust the implementation to a qualified specialist to prevent burns of healthy tissue. The impact must be very precise and only on the body of the accumulation. After healing, scars may remain. The cost of the procedure depends on the chosen drug and is calculated by the doctor individually.
No method provides a 100% guarantee of efficacy and absence of recurrence. The result depends not only on the type of wart, its location, but also on the qualifications of the medical personnel and the equipment and preparations used. During the recovery period, an important role is played by the patient himself, who must follow all the doctor's instructions: treat places daily to remove warts on the fingers, prevent injuries, hypothermia of the palms, take prescribed medications, get rid of bad habits and normalize the diet. Only then you won't have to decide again how to get rid of a wart on your finger.
Treatment of warts on the fingers with drugs
Competent medical treatment of warts on the fingers involves taking drugs whose action is aimed at suppressing a viral infection, increasing immunity and restoring the balance of minerals, vitamins and other beneficial compounds.
Types of medical products intended for the treatment of warts on the fingers:
- Oral preparations. This category includes means of complex effects: antivirals and immunomodulators. At present, there are no drugs that can completely kill the human papillomavirus, so one of the tasks of modern medicine is to simulate natural immunity to increase the body's resistance and significantly reduce the viral load, stopping the growth of warts on the fingers and other places .
- External use. Some drugs are intended for antiseptic treatment, others accelerate tissue regeneration, others have a local antiviral and immunostimulating effect, others nourish skin cells, normalizing all metabolic processes.
- Cauterizing external agents. They can contain both cauterizing acids and other components that contribute to the destruction of growths. Home use is associated with the risk of burns, so the procedure must be performed with great care. Some drugs act on the principle of cryodestruction, others on the principle of chemical destruction.
- Vitamin and mineral complexes. They are prescribed to prevent a lack of nutrients in the body, restore the metabolism and performance of individual organs and systems, including the immune system.
Folk remedies for warts on the finger
The efficacy of traditional medicine does not appease the controversy. Some argue that it is ineffective and people simply waste precious time refusing to go to the doctor, others consider it the only correct way to safely cure most diseases.
In search of the right answer to the question of how to reduce a wart on a finger, it is best to use the golden mean. Consult a doctor and discuss with him the options for complex therapy, including instrumental removal of growths, taking specific HPV drugs and suitable folk remedies.
Popular folk remedies for the treatment of warts on the fingers:
- Plum wrap. Dissolve salt (20 g) in water (150 ml), add vinegar (20 ml) here, mix and dip half of the pitted prune into this solution. Infusion time - 2 hours. Remove the plum, mash the pulp. Apply the resulting slurry to the warts and fix it with a bandage or plaster for 2-8 hours.
- Thuja oil for warts. It is applied externally 4-5 times a day. Daily use of this remedy ensures rapid recovery of epithelial cells.
- Tui tincture.Thuja leaves (20 g) are poured with vodka (100 ml). Insist 14 days. Lubricate the areas affected by warts on the fingers several times for 3 minutes. The procedure is repeated twice a day for 14-20 days.
- Coniferous tincture. Take young coniferous twigs and juniper fruits in equal quantities. Mix and grind all raw materials. Put 50 g of the resulting mixture in a glass dish and pour 200 g of alcohol. Leave for about 3 weeks. Strain and use to lubricate growths. It is enough to apply 1 time per day.
- Lemon peel infusion. Remove the peel from 1-2 lemons and chop it, you can use a knife, you can use a meat grinder. Put the mass in a glass jar and fill with table vinegar in a volume of 100-150 ml. Close the lid tightly. Leave to insist for a week, do not forget to shake every day. Then remove the cake and treat the warts on the fingers with the resulting infusion, trying not to touch healthy skin.
- Horse chestnut decoction. For preparation, boil 2. 5 liters of water, add horse chestnut leaves (120 g) and boil for 15 minutes over low heat, filter and pour the broth into a basin. When it cools down to 36-40 degrees, turn your palms down. The duration of such a bath is 20 minutes. It is necessary to carry out 8 procedures within 2. 5 weeks, i. e. repeat every 3 days before bedtime.
- Herbal infusion. Such a tool affects the whole body in a complex. But its most important property is the stimulation of immunity to fight the virus. Systematic reception stops the growth of warts on the finger. For preparation, mix and then grind 20 g of juniper needles, plantain leaves, chicory root and dandelion, birch leaves, as well as 30 g of horsetail and nettle. Store in a glass container with a lid. For a decoction, take 20 g of the mixture, put it in an enamel pan, pour boiling water (500 ml) and leave for 60 minutes. Filter and consume inside before meals, 100-150 ml 3-4 times a day.
Regardless of what caused the weakening of the immune system and caused the growth of epithelial tumors, warts that have formed on the fingers and toes, elbows, knees, feet and other places require a special attention and proper treatment. Timely hospitalization, as well as the choice of suitable methods of removing growths and treating HPV, will allow you to recover faster and forget about the unpleasant manifestations of a viral disease for a long time.