Warts & Verrucae treatment.
What Are Verrucae?
Verrucas and warts are caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). Generally, verrucas and warts only need treating if they are getting bigger, are painful or more are verrucas are appearing. Verrucas often look like small cauliflowers type lesions with tiny black dots, which are blood capillaries. 50% of verrucas resolve by themselves within 6-12 months in children and 2 years in adults.
If you have tried home remedies (where suitable, caustics and freezing sprays should be avoided in people with poor circulation, numb feet and/or people with diabetes, particularly with neuropathy) and would like treatment we can offer several options.
On the simplest level we can just debride (remove) the hard skin that can grow secondary to the HPV virus, this can both make you more comfortable and allow home remedies to be applied more directly to the verrucal tissue.
Please note as verrucas are virus, any of the below treatment options below are trying to ignite an immune response, so that the body can respond and eradicate the virus. Sometimes we may suggest a break after a certain number of treatments if we feel the verruca is showing signs of resolving.
Treatment Options
Caustics/Acids
We can apply silver nitrate, salicylic acid, or Verrutop. Verrutop uses a chemical called Nitrizinic Complex that reacts with the viral DNA causing the verruca to dehydrate. This chemical is applied to the verruca or wart at intervals of 7-14 days. For maximum effect, the patient must apply surgical spirit twice daily. This treatment often requires between 1-6 treatments and sometimes more.
Cryotherapy
We can freeze your verruca, this often requires multiple treatments.
Verrucae Needling
Verrucae needling can make verrucas smaller or eradicate verrucas.
We make the foot numb with local anaesthetic, with your help we then select the largest and thickest verruca to treat. We remove the overlying hard skin associated with the verruca and then use a needle to repeatedly puncture the verrucae until a wound is created. We will review the wound after 7 days. It can take 6 months after treatment for the verrucae to resolve. The procedure can be repeated if desired.
SWIFT Treatment
SWIFT treatment works by delivering low-dose microwave energy directly into the verrucal tissue. This energy heats the wart or verruca to a precise temperature, triggering an immune response that targets and fights the HPV virus. This innovative approach not only treats the visible lesion but also encourages the body to combat the underlying virus, which often results in a higher success rate compared to more traditional treatments.