How to get rid of wart on thumb

Warts on the fingers commonly occur from biting fingernails or picking at hangnails. The wart virus has no cure, so warts can return at the same spot or appear somewhere else. However, you can treat warts yourself at home with salicylic acid or receive treatment from a dermatologist — or they may go away on their own.

A: Common warts are caused by infection with human papillomavirus (HPV), which is an umbrella term for over 100 types of viruses. Certain strains of HPV can cause common warts to develop on the hands, fingers and other non-genital areas of the body.

The wart will fall off as the blister pushes it away. A doctor can use a special instrument or knife to scrape or cut away the wart. Curettage may leave scarring and is not a good technique to remove warts on the soles of the feet.

Cover the wart with a piece of duct tape, after a few days, remove the duct tape. Clean the seed wart and then reapply another piece of duct tape. Scrape away any deceased, peeling skin with a pumice stone each time you remove the duct tape. Continue this process until the seed wart is gone.

Using super glue on warts turns out to be a patented method that works much the same as duct tape, except that when the glue is removed every 6 days, some of the wart is removed with it.

The potassium in banana peel is rumored to fight HPV. However, no research links potassium to the treatment of warts or viral skin infections. There also isn’t scientific evidence that banana peels fight HPV. If you want to try it, rub the inside of a banana peel on the wart.

Peeling medicine (salicylic acid).

For common warts, look for a 17 percent salicylic acid solution. These products (Compound W, Dr. Scholl’s Clear Away Wart Remover, others) are usually used daily, often for a few weeks. For best results, soak your wart in warm water for a few minutes before applying the product.

Gather a bottle of apple cider vinegar, cotton balls or cotton-tipped applicators, and a small bandage. Soak the cotton ball in apple cider vinegar, and apply this to the area where the wart is. Place the bandage over the cotton ball and leave it in place overnight. Some people may leave it on for up to 24 hours.

It is observed that toothpaste can make warts slowly dry out by cutting off the oxygen supply. Though toothpaste is one of the popular home remedies for getting rid of warts, it is advised to not use toothpaste on your warts because it can do more harm than good by irritating your skin.

People also use duct tape or clear nail polish to suffocate the virus, thereby removing the wart, although these treatments probably do not work any better than a placebo. Use duct tape like you would a wart-remover patch. Put a small strip over the wart and leave it in place for about six days.

I didn’t want to take that drastic step yet, and then I remembered either Vicks VapoRub or duct tape as a home remedy from your column on warts. So I had my wife put a dab of VapoRub on the wart and cover it with duct tape. Five days of this and no more wart. It just fell out, and the hole closed.

Weakened Defenses

Some people are at increased risk for warts due to weakened immune systems. Teenagers and people who have conditions that weaken their immune systems, like HIV, are at increased risk for warts.