Plantar warts appear as rough and spongy patches on the skin. They are usually colored yellow, gray or brown with dark pinpoints. These pinpoints are the tiny capillaries that carry blood to the wart. When one rubs it vigorously, the wart can bleed. The surface of the wart can be misleading since it reveals only a tiny rough surface. However, the portion under the skin is the bigger part of the wart, at least twice as big as what one would see outside.

If one does not seek medical treatment immediately, these plantar warts can grow up to 1 inch in circumference and then spread into clusters. These are now termed as mosaic warts. In can be so severe that it can result in leg and back pain, as well as a change in posture.

There are a lot of available treatments for plantar warts. These include:

Over-the-counter medicines or special chemicals that can destroy the warts as well as the healthy skin cells around it. Self-treatment using these preparations is not advisable to patients.

The doctor, or the podiatrist, can apply topical mild acids to treat plantar warts. This will take multiple applications that run for several weeks, until the warts disintegrate. Examples are Salicylic acid, Cantharidin and Dichloroacetic acid.

Laser treatments, such as CO2 laser, can be another effective treatment option for warts. There is little or no scarring and this can remove the wart for good in most cases. This can be performed in an outpatient surgery facility or even in the doctor’s office.

Cryotherapy is another effective solution in treating warts. Sodium Nitride, or other very cold solutions, are applied on the wart and freezes them. This destroys the virus and then the wart turns black and falls off after a couple of days. Sometimes though, the solution cannot penetrate deep enough, so the virus can still survive.

Curettage, or surgical removal of warts is also an option. This removes isolated warts not greater than 2cm, or mosaic patches of warts. This can be used in combination with other treatments, if needed.

Where It Grows

As the name suggests, genital warts in men can grow in the penis and anus area, as well as the area between the penis and scrotum. In women, genital warts can be found in the vagina, the cervix, vulva and perineal area. These warts actually can grow up to any size. Some warts can grow up to discomfiting sizes while some are too tiny that one cannot even see them.

What Causes Genital Warts?

Genital warts are dangerous since these can lead to cervical cancer in women or penile cancer in men. The human papillomavirus, or HPV, is virus responsible for this infection, though not all types of HPV can cause genital warts.

One can be infected by genital warts through having vaginal, oral or anal sex with a person already infected with it. The best way to prevent contracting HPV is to abstain from sexual activity. If one is sexually active, maintain a monogamous relationship and make sure your partner does not carry it. This can lower the risk of transmitting and getting HPV.

Genital warts can have a long incubation period, so you may not see it immediately on your partner. Even then, it can already be transmitted during incubation period.

It may takes months or, in some cases, years for one to notice that the genital warts growing. Warts can grow on the cervix of a woman, which is inside the body, and may not be seen. Using condoms may also lower the risk of transmitting or catching HPV, but remember that not all parts of the man’s genitals are covered by it.

Treatments Available For Genital Warts

One should immediately seek medical help when one notices genital warts. The doctor may diagnose the warts through pap smear in women, or by just plain examination. These are treatable by the doctor, and you should not be doing self-treatment. The wart can be removed, but the virus will continue to live inside the skin, so there is a large possibility that they will return more than once.

There are a lot of ways to remove genital warts. These are some of the treatments available:

1. Cryotherapy

The wart is frozen then removed.

2. Laser treatment

The wart is removed by a laser.

3. Electrosurgical Excision Procedure(LEEP)

A sharp, loop-shaped instrument is passed underneath the wart and it is cut out from the skin.

4. Chemical treatment

Special chemicals can dissolve genital warts and remove them. This treatment usually takes several weeks with multiple applications. Please take note that the chemicals that are used to move warts from hands and feet should not be used in removing genital warts. These can cause a lot of irritation on your genitals.

If left untreated, you could risk transmitting the HPV to your partner if you are sexually active. This can also lead to more complications, and even more serious conditions such as cancer of the penis, vagina, anus and vulva.

Genital herpes manifests only minimal symptoms if it manifests at all. When they appear, though, you will find one or more blisters around the genitals or the rectal area which will eventually break and leave sores. These sores may take 2 to 4 weeks to heal. Other outbreaks may appear after weeks or months after the initial outbreak. In most cases, however, the succeeding outbreaks are less severe than the first and it heals faster, too. The number of outbreaks may lessen after some time but the virus can stay in the body for an indefinite period of time.

Genital Warts

Genital warts appear to be very tiny or big masses that spread into large areas in the genital area. These often appear in cauliflower-shaped clusters in the penis, vagina, or rectal area. These can also grow inside a woman’s body, more specifically along the cervix. Both genital herpes and genital warts can develop in the mouth of a person who has engaged in oral sex with an infected individual, though it is a rare cause with genital warts.

The Difference

In both conditions, the person may not be aware that they are already infected until the symptoms appear. In genital herpes, the symptoms usually appear after 2 weeks from the transmission of HSV-2. Sores can appear on the genital area, sometimes accompanied by flu-like symptoms, such as fever and swollen glands. Around 4 or more outbreaks within the year are expected after the first one, and they may decrease over time. Some people do not have sores, or they may have very mild infections that they mistake for other skin conditions or even insect bites. On the other end, genital warts may take months, or even years before the symptoms are seen. But once they are visible, they are immediately identifiable as genital warts. Some may disappear without any treatment, while some stay indefinitely and needs to be treated.

Both genital herpes and genital warts are dangerous since they can lead to different complications. Genital herpes can be transmitted to babies by a pregnant woman and this can be fatal. It can weaken one’s immune system and make one more susceptible to HIV. Genital warts, if left untreated, may lead to cancer in the genitals.

Unfortunately, there are no cures that could remove both completely, but medication is available in lessening the symptoms of both conditions. The virus will still be present in the body and will most likely reappear later in time. So the best way to combat this is prevention. One should refrain from having sexual activity, or at least maintain a monogamous sexual relationship with someone who is not infected with such. In this way, there is less risk in developing these conditions.

Warts can also be passed through sexual intercourse. If one has warts on the genital area and engages in unprotected oral, vaginal or anal sex with another, the other person is at risk of having warts as well. Warts can also grow inside the cervix of a woman and she may not notice she has them until she passes it to a sexual partner during intercourse.

Warts Treatment

Usually warts will disappear over a period of time. Some will stay on the body until it is completely treated. Warts can cause a lot of discomfort to a person and especially when it is on one’s face, it can be source of embarrassment. These can also bleed and be painful once rubbed. They can spread to different parts of the body or to other people if left untreated.

There are many ways to treat warts. You should first seek medical advice if you discover warts on your body. Do remember that there are different ways to remove warts in different parts of the body. Buying over the counter medication to remove these by yourself may sound like a good idea but it should be noted that you need to be careful especially when applying these chemicals to your face or genitals.

These are the different ways in removing warts from the skin:

Application of salicylic acid on the feet, hands and knees

Duct tape treatment

Application of Cantharidin on the affected area

Application of liquid nitrogen to freeze the wart

Cutting of the wart by the doctor

Burning of the wart

Laser Wart Removal

Whichever treatment you choose, be sure to consult your doctor about the advantages and disadvantages of each treatment. This will give you an idea about the cost, possible side effects as well as the effectiveness of the said treatment.

Usually, when medical treatment is applied, the virus causing the wart is eliminated. Thus, the wart may be removed for good. The body’s immune system can likewise produce antibodies to get rid of the remaining bits of warts that are left after a successful treatment. However, warts on the genital area are quite hard to remove and they may come back especially if they are in a moist environment. Furthermore, genital warts are considered to be one of the most dangerous kinds of warts as this may lead to cervical cancer for women and penile cancer for men. In such case, one should consult a doctor on possible ways to treat genital warts.