A wart on the finger is a benign tumor of a viral nature. The causative agent that provokes the appearance of such growths is the human papillomavirus. Warts are considered safe formations, because. rarely cause cancer. However, this fact does not mean that treatment is not necessary at all. This article provides detailed information about 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 which causes their growth is highly contagious and spares neither adults nor children. The causative agent, penetrating on the skin, is introduced into the tissues by the slightest damage and remains in the body forever. At the same time, different levels of viral load are observed at different times, that is, 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. Thus, an increase in the activity of the virus causes the appearance of these same warts on the fingers, feet, knees and other areas of the skin.
The surest way to become infected is through direct contact with someone who is already infected. HPV is often transmitted sexually, 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 contact of the upper extremities with infected surfaces, whether these are the hands of a carrier of the virus or objects that he has just taken from him. to use - a pen, cutlery, a napkin, a book, etc. All public places are considered places of increased danger, but especially those with high humidity.
Even a mother's baby can be infected. This happens during childbirth.
With the localization of warts on the fingers, there is an increased risk of self-infection, ie. 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 injury, which leads to the release of a large amount of the pathogen on the surface, and the fact that the fingers are in contact with all other skin integuments and can transmit the virustheir.
The reality is that the answer to the question why warts appear on fingers is rather ambiguous and involves many provoking factors. First of all, the development of a viral infection is facilitated by a decrease in the immune status of an infected person, when the organism becomes unable to resist the activity of the virus, to maintain its population at the same level and toprevent 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 several reasons. It is an unbalanced diet, the abuse of drugs, 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 diseases, skin diseases, etc. , lead to the activation of the pathogen. An individual characteristic 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, bitten nails and burrs can all be the cause of warts on fingers.
What do finger warts 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 on their own or completely ignore the outward manifestations of the disease, exposing themselves to the risk of spreading infection, and others to the risk of infection.
In order not to make such mistakes, it is better to study in detail what the warts on the finger look like, what types they are, and go to the hospital in a timely manner in order to make an accurate diagnosis anddetermine an effective treatment. regime.
Benign epithelial changes caused by HPV have a capillary network that nourishes their cells. Because of this, when the integrity of the growth is damaged, minor bleeding very often occurs, which increases the risk of spreading infection and infection of the wound. This is partly why trying to cut these hardened fabrics is strongly discouraged.
The warts first appear in a single quantity - only one or two. But due to problems with the functioning of the immune system, more and more formations may appear. Sometimes they even merge, so that an extensive skin lesion is formed.
It should be noted that a rapidly growing focus indicates a high activity of the pathogen and causes an urgent visit to the doctor. It is also worth going to the hospital to find out how to treat warts on the fingers in cases when the neoplasm begins to darken or redden, if there is a visible change in its structure, and aswelling, suppuration appears, or if there is an arbitrary removal of pathological fluid from the growth body.
Color warts can be yellowish, in 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:
- common warts. The second name is ordinary. They quite often 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 subject to tension and burrs. Flesh-colored formations are more common, but yellow-brown or grayish ones are also found. The shape is nodular or domed. Diameter 2-7mm. The structure of the buildup is quite dense and slightly rough. It is drier than healthy skin. May crack and cause pain.
- Superficial flat warts. Their surface protrudes only slightly from the skin. The shape is rounded, although as they expand 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 3-4 mm. Their presence on the skin is most 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 appear flat with a slight indentation in the center, but their root goes deeper into the layers of the dermis. This, of course, causes considerable daily discomfort, which more often than other reasons forces a person to go to the doctor. Deep formations are irregular in shape, color and size are usually the same as superficial warts.
- Subungual warts. The name was not chosen by chance. 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 lack of proper hygienic treatment, they grow, penetrating into the tissues under the nail, causing rejection of thenail bed plate. In this case, it is no longer possible to speak only of an aesthetic defect. Pain and suppuration appear, gradually the formation reaches the matrix and irrevocably destroys it.
Many believe that the treatment of such a disease is not mandatory, if you are trying to strengthen the immune system so that the body can cope on its own. However, this view is largely erroneous. After all, there are many reasons why it is necessary to treat warts on the fingers and other parts of the body. Firstly, these neoplasms are quite contagious, and a person with even one wart can infect several healthy people, in whom the disease can develop into 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 the finger. What can we say about the pain, susceptibility to injury and 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 only be used when prescribed by a doctor and in combination with drug therapy, since the simple removal of growths by any method does not remove theviral activity and does not guarantee the absence of disease recurrence. illness in the near future.
Removal of warts on the fingers in the clinic
During the appointment with a dermatologist, a detailed diagnosis is carried out, 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. Often, tests for concomitant diseases, such as HIV, may be required, which can also cause warts on the finger and worsen the course of the disease.
Accordingly, multilateral treatment is prescribed. It includes the excision of growths by any of the modern instrumental methods, including:
- Laser removal. The most popular method. It is offered by almost all clinics. Special equipment allows you to almost painlessly burn an epithelial tumor, thereby avoiding 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.
- elimination of radio waves. The method is based on the force of radio waves, which simply cut out the growths without bleeding. With the help of a radio knife, you can remove warts on the fingers, practically without touching healthy tissue. The procedure is quite expensive, but it is recognized as very effective and safe.
- Electrocautery. The acting force is a current of different frequencies. It cauterizes the wart cells on the finger within seconds. At the same time, the vessels are sealed, which prevents bleeding.
- Surgical route.It is not performed without local anesthesia, because. removal is done with a scalpel. Named less frequently than the 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 encrustations in the skin and under the nail plate. During the procedure, healthy tissue is often injured. After healing, scars often remain. The price of surgery is calculated individually in each individual case.
- Cryotherapy. Widely used method. The body of the wart on the finger is removed by exposure to liquid nitrogen at ultra-low temperatures. This option is characterized by good performance, painlessness, no need for local anesthesia. However, during the recovery period - approximately 7-10 days - all doctor's recommendations should be followed so that the treated areas heal quickly and without problems.
- Chemical method. Removal of a wart on a finger is carried out using harsh chemicals, such as trichloroacetic acid. It is best to entrust the implementation to a qualified specialist in order to prevent burns of healthy tissue. The impact must be very precise and only on the body of the assembly. After healing, scars may remain. The cost of the procedure depends on the chosen drug and is calculated individually by the doctor.
No method guarantees 100% effectiveness and the absence of recurrence. The result depends not only on the type of wart, its location, but also on the qualifications of medical personnel and the equipment and preparations used. During the recovery period, the patient himself plays an important role, who must follow all the instructions of the doctor: daily treat the places to remove warts on the fingers, prevent injuries, hypothermia of the palms, take medicationsprescribed, eliminate bad habits and normalize the diet. Only then will you no longer have to decide 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 consists of taking drugs whose action is aimed at suppressing a viral infection, raising the immune status and restoring the balance of minerals, vitamins and other beneficial compounds.
Types of medical products for the treatment of warts on fingers:
- Oral preparations. This category includes means of complex effects - antivirals and immunomodulators. At present, no drug can completely kill the human papillomavirus. One of the tasks of modern medicine, therefore, is to simulate natural immunity in order 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.
- Cauterization of 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 should be carried out 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 nutrient deficiency in the body, restore metabolism and performance of individual organs and systems, including the immune system.
Folk remedies for warts on the finger
The effectiveness of traditional medicine does not appease disputes. Some claim that it is ineffective and that people are simply wasting precious time by refusing to go to the doctor, others consider it the only correct way to cure most diseases safely.
In search of the right answer to the question of how to reduce a wart on your finger, it is better to use the middle ground. Consult a doctor and discuss with him the options of complex therapy, including instrumental removal of growths, taking HPV-specific drugs and appropriate folk remedies.
Popular folk remedies for treating warts on the fingers:
- Plum Compresses. Dissolve salt (20 g) in water (150 ml), add vinegar (20 ml) here, stir and immerse half of the pitted plum in this solution. Brewing time - 2 hours. Remove the plum, mash the pulp. Apply the resulting gruel to the warts and fix it with a bandage or bandage for 2-8 hours.
- Cedar oil against 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.
- Tincture of conifers. Take young twigs of conifers and juniper fruits in equal quantities. Mix and grind all the raw materials. Place 50 g of the resulting mixture in a glass dish and pour 200 g of alcohol. Leave about 3 weeks. Strain and use to lubricate growths. It is enough to apply 1 time per day.
- Infusion of lemon zest. Remove the skin from 1-2 lemons and chop it, you can use a knife, you can use a meat grinder. Place 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 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. To prepare, you need to boil 2. 5 liters of water, add horse chestnut leaves (120 g) to it and boil for 15 minutes over low heat, strain and pour the broth into a basin. When it cools to 36-40 degrees, lower your palms into it. The duration of taking such a bath is 20 minutes. It is necessary to carry out 8 procedures in 2. 5 weeks, that is, repeat every 3 days at bedtime.
- Herbal tea. 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 the preparation, mix and then grind 20 g of juniper needles, plantain leaves, chicory and dandelion root, 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, place in an enameled saucepan, 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 the growth of epithelial tumors, warts on the fingers and toes, on the elbows, knees, feet and elsewhere require special attention and proper treatment. Timely admission to the hospital, as well as the selection of adequate methods for 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.