How to get rid of warts on fingers

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.

Most people develop an immune response that causes warts to go away by themselves. One-fifth of all warts disappear within six months, and two-thirds are gone within two years. However, if your wart doesn’t disappear, or if it’s unsightly or uncomfortable, you can try self-treatment or seek help from your doctor.

Are warts contagious? Warts aren’t considered very contagious, but they can be caught by close skin-to-skin contact. The infection can also be transmitted indirectly from contaminated objects or surfaces, such as the area surrounding a swimming pool. You are more likely to get infected if your skin is wet or damaged.

Apple cider vinegar

Salicylic acid is a common wart treatment that peels away infected skin. Vinegar also has natural antimicrobial properties that may help fight HPV, but more studies are necessary. To try it, mix 2-parts apple cider vinegar and 1-part water. Soak a cotton ball with this mixture.

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.

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.

Don’t pick at warts or try to peel them off, as this will only spread the virus. Have separate nail clippers for healthy and infected areas. Try not to shave over warts.

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.

Don’t rub, scratch, or pick at the wart. Doing so could spread the virus to another part of your body or cause the wart to become infected.

Home Treatments for Warts

Warts are contagious, especially when you start to treat them. Any object used (tweezers, file, etc.) should not be used on any other body part after touching the wart.

Cutting the wart off won’t cure the core infection (so the wart is likely to grow back anyway), and if you do it improperly you can make the situation much worse and greatly increase your risk of a painful infection.

Also try to keep it off the normal skin. The acid will turn the wart into deceased skin (it will turn white).

One needs to keep going down until just below the level of the surrounding skin to eradicate a wart completely. Stop when the base of the wart looks exactly like normal skin (i.e. no black dots or ‘graininess). If they become sore or bleed a little just leave off the treatment and carry on the following night.

A: A common wart should not bleed unless it is scraped, scratched or injured in some way. If a wart bleeds without a clear cause or bleeds profusely after injury, it is important to consult a doctor without delay.

Common warts never turn cancerous. They may bleed if injured. Since warts are caused by a virus (e.g., human papilloma virus), they are contagious. Warts may spread on the body or to other people.

Common warts may form anywhere on your body, but are most common on your hands, fingers, knees, feet, and elbows. You may have any of the following: A raised, round, tan, or skin-colored, growth. Black dots in the center of your wart, or bleeding if the wart is scratched or scraped.

Common warts are caused by a virus and are transmitted by touch. It can take a wart as long as two to six months to develop after your skin has been exposed to the virus. Common warts are usually harmless and eventually disappear on their own.

After a treatment, the skin will blister or get irritated and eventually slough off. That skin is deceased and so is the virus within it so it isn’t contagious anymore. Unfortunately, even though the skin around the area of treatment may look normal, there is often virus still present in it.

You can spread warts to yourself, too

Not only can you spread warts to other people, you can spread them to other parts of your body, too. If you have warts, avoid touching other areas of your body.

Warts are harmless. In most cases, they go away on their own within months or years. If warts spread or cause pain, or if you don’t like the way they look, you may want to treat them.