If you suspect you have genital warts or have been
diagnosed with genital warts, the very first thing
you will want to know is how to get rid of genital
warts. Genital warts can appear in both men and women
– male genital warts in the form of genital
warts on the penis, and female
genital warts by development of vaginal warts.
Both can develop anal warts and are caused by the
human
papilloma virus (HPV) which is a sexually transmitted
virus. This highly contagious virus is transmitted
through sexual or direct skin to skin contact with
an infected area or sore. And once you have the virus
in your system, it is there for life. Many people
who have the virus do not go on to develop genital
warts but poor nutrition, a weakened immune system
and emotional stress will contribute to the likelihood
of these genital warts appearing. However, the good
news is that if genital warts do appear, you can get
rid of genital warts and you should do so for your
health sake.
Health professionals often recommend medication applied
to warts as the first choice of genital warts treatment.
How to get rid of genital warts at home
Many people who suffer from genital warts are able
to treat themselves very successfully in the privacy
of their own homes using home
remedies for genital warts:
o By using a natural healing product made from essential
oils. This formula will eliminate all strains of the
wart virus with no skin irritation and no scarring
by drawing the warts out of the skin. They will then
flake away. The product is applied topically to the
affected area.
o Imiquimod (Aldara) available on prescription for
home use. This treatment induces the body to produce
proteins that protect against the HPV and boost the
immune system locally.
o Podofilox lotion or gel (Condylox) available on
prescription for home use and is applied twice daily
for 3 consecutive days for up to 4 weeks. This product
stops the growth of the wart cells.
How to get rid of genital warts using other
methods
Here are some topical medications for getting rid
of genital warts which would need to be applied by
a health professional:
o Podophyllin resin (Podofyn) which is a plant extract
that is applied every one to two weeks.
o Interferon injections into the wart may help the
body’s immune system to fight the virus that
is causing the wart. The injections are carried out
twice a week for up to 8 weeks or until the warts
have gone.
o Trichloroacetic acid (TCA) or bichloroacetic acid
(BCA) to be repeated weekly until the warts have gone.
o Flurouracil (Efudex, Fluoroplex). This cream would
be applied weekly until the warts have gone.
Here are some procedures which would be carried out
by a health professional:
o Warts
cryotherapy involves putting very cold liquid
nitrogen, nitrous oxide or carbon dioxide directly
onto the warts. This freezes the wart tissue and destroys
it. Cryotherapy can be used to treat internal warts
as well as external warts. The procedure generally
takes 5 to 15 minutes, depending on the number of
and size of warts.
o Laser treatment is used for vaporizing warts. Laser
treatment is very precise and can be used to treat
warts in difficult to reach areas. Laser treatment
also has a low risk of damage to surrounding tissue.
During the procedure smoke created from the vaporizing
tissue is extracted by a machine. This can be quite
loud and may be alarming if you haven’t been
warned. The recurrence rates of warts after laser
treatment range between 10 and 40%.e
o Electrocautery is where the wart tissue is destroyed
with heat from an electric current. This procedure
literally burns warts off; causing a smell of burning
skin what may be distressing to some people particularly
if they have not been warned beforehand. The recurrence
rate is about 25%
o Excision is where the warts are cut away as a surgical
procedure. A local or general anesthetic will be used
to combat any pain. This treatment to get rid of genital
warts is usually offered as a final option or if you
have few but large warts that are easily accessible.
Sutures or stitches are not generally necessary and
diathermy may be used to stop any bleeding. There
may also be some scarring and the area may be tender
and sore for a day or two after treatment. The recurrence
rate is about 20%.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are so many different ways
on how to get rid of genital warts. Genital warts
may even disappear without treatment but this is risky
as it could take many months or even years and they
could just as easily multiply and spread.
New therapies for genital warts are being researched
and investigated all the time. HPV vaccines are now
available for the prevention of HPV related warts
and cancers. In the future, there will surely be a
cure
for genital warts and HPV but that could still
be many years’ away.
Go
to our Genital Warts Treatment page
