warts and veruccas

Question 1

what are the different types of warts?

Answer 1

• common warts
• plane warts
• filiform warts
• palmar and plantar warts
• mosaic warts

Question 2

what are common warts?

Answer 2

are firm, raised papules with a rough surface that resembles a cauliflower common on knuckles, knees, and fingers — usually asymptomatic but may be tender

Question 3

what are plane warts?

Answer 3

usually round, flat-topped, and skin coloured or greyish yellow and are common on the backs of hands

Question 4

what are filiform warts?

Answer 4

nger-like appearance and may have a stalk and are more common on the face and neck

Question 5

what are palmar and plantar warts?

Answer 5

row on the palms and the soles of the feet (verrucae)

Question 6

what are mosaic warts?

Answer 6

mosaic warts occur when palmar or plantar warts coalesce into larger plaques on
the hands and feet

Question 7

what are the red flags for verruca and warts?

Answer 7

• The person has a facial or anogenital wart
• The person is immunocompromised or has
diabetes
• The person has areas of skin that are
extensively affected, for example, mosaic
warts of the hands and feet
• The person is bothered by persistent warts
that are unresponsive to both topical
salicylic acid and cryotherapy, if indicated
• There is evidence of broken skin

Question 8

what is the lifestyle advice for warts and verruca?

Answer 8

Warts are contagious and should be prevented from spreading and infecting other areas of your skin, or another person by:
• Avoiding to scratch the wart or attempting to cut it
• Wearing a waterproof plaster or sock to cover verrucas when swimming to prevent infection
to others
• Filing the wart using an emery board or pumice stone once weekly to remove dead,
hardened skin and enable the treatment to penetrate to the ‘root’ of the wart

Question 9

what are some of the treatment options?

Answer 9

• The first line choice would be a salicylic acid-based product e.g. Salactol®
o They should be applied daily, protecting healthy skin with either petroleum jelly or
a plaster with a hole cut in it
o Some products contain a combination of agents, e.g. Bazuka®
• Cryotherapy, freezing the wart using liquid nitrogen, is usually carried out by GP surgeries, however an OTC preparation (Wartner®) that uses a similar principle may be trialled before referring the patient

Question 10

what is some advice to give parents who’s kids have verruca?

Answer 10

Children with warts or verrucae should not be excluded from activities, such as sports and swimming, but should take care to minimize transmission