Removal of warts is a required procedure in modern clinics. Its essence is to extract abnormal cells from healthy tissues. The methods of removing warts are varied and the choice depends on several factors at the same time: the size of the neoplasm, the location, the number of growths, the personal preferences of the doctor and the patient.
Today, the following methods of removing warts are the most popular:
- Laser;
- Radio waves;
- Removal with liquid nitrogen;
- Electrocoagulation;
- Traditional surgery.
The use of one or another method of wart removal (cryodestruction, electrocoagulation, laser exposure, surgical excision) depends on the size of the formation and the personal preferences of the patient.
All methods, except for the surgical one, do not require specific training. Blood tests need to be done for coagulability, infections, etc. Only before removal of the wart with a scalpel.
Laser wart removal
Laser removal is the most popular way to get rid of skin growths. Its advantage is the speed, the absence of scars, the minimum risk of infection and other complications. The method is suitable for removing small warts, although it is also applicable for large neoplasms. For example, it is difficult to do without a laser when it is necessary to remove a wart on the face or another open area of the body. Healthy tissues are not affected by the laser destruction of warts. There are no incisions on the skin, the method is completely contactless.
The laser beam gently cauterizes the blood vessels surrounding the wart. Bacteria die during the procedure. Recovery takes no more than a week. Swelling, bleeding, infections and other complications are excluded. Warts remaining after tissue removal, if necessary, can be sent for histology, as they are not completely destroyed.
The procedure is simple, you can use anesthesia. The patient is placed on a table and the laser head is directed towards the wart. Next, a beam is launched, which evaporates some of the neoplastic tissue in a fraction of a second. After a few seconds of such exposure, the procedure ends, but if the wart is very large, you need to remove it in several steps. This is the main disadvantage: if a course of procedures is required, the patient spends a lot of personal time and pays for several sessions.
Removal of warts by the radio wave method
This is the gentlest technique and is also best suited for small warts. High-frequency waves allow you to remove pathological tissues, literally making them evaporate, which makes this method similar to laser destruction. The trace that remains on the skin is practically invisible, so the use of radio waves is also possible on the face.
In addition, the advantages of this method include:
- Painless;
- Fast recovery;
- A minimum of complications and side effects;
- Elimination of bacteria during the procedure;
- There is no need for complicated care;
- Possibility of histological analysis.
The downside is that for particularly large warts, radio wave surgery is not suitable.
Removal of warts with liquid nitrogen
Cryodestruction is a contact method for the elimination of warts. Its advantages lie in the low price, the speed of the procedure and a good result. The method is suitable for removal in any area of the body, but is rarely used when working with a face - small traces are possible. On the negative side: painful sensations are sometimes observed during and after the procedure.
The liquid nitrogen removal process is simple. The patient is placed or seated on a sofa in the operating room, the exposure site is treated with an antiseptic. The doctor dips a cotton ball or special tool in liquid nitrogen. Its temperature is below -195. 75 ° C. After that, the doctor brings the stick to the wart and touches it. Tissues freeze and collapse quickly: cells break due to the expansion of frozen water. Remnants of tissue are removed, the wound is treated.
Electrocoagulation of warts
This method is also suitable for most areas of the body, including the face. Before the operation, it is imperative to use local anesthesia and treat the skin with an antiseptic. Removal is done using an electrocoagulator, a special device that heats tissues with a high-frequency electric current. The loop of the device touches the neoplasm and gently cuts it, while simultaneously cauterizing the surrounding blood vessels and killing the bacteria. Loop temperature 800 ° C. After exposure, a thin crust forms, which in a few days comes off leaving a small pink speck.
The advantages of the procedure are the small amount of time required, the ability to remove multiple warts in one session (if they are located close to each other), large warts can be removed. During and after surgery, bleeding and infection are excluded. When small warts are removed, no traces remain.
The downside is the inability to use it for plantar warts. They are very rough and localized in a too dense layer of the skin. In such situations more intense treatments are used.
Surgical removal of warts
Today this is the most effective way to remove warts, as it allows you to ensure the elimination of all pathological tissues. However, it is only used in extreme cases, when the warts are very large or constantly recur.
5 stages of the operation:
- Treatment of the area with an antiseptic solution;
- Clean scalpel incisions around the lesion
- Removing his body with tweezers from surrounding healthy tissue;
- Treatment of the operative wound;
- Suturing and dressing.
The rare use of this method is due to the scars that remain after suturing. In addition, there is a risk of infection, inflammation, edema, bleeding in case of extensive postoperative wounds. However, with large old warts, you can only get rid of them in this way. In case of urgency, surgical removal is also performed on the face.
A dermatologist and surgeon will help you choose a way to remove warts during a preliminary consultation. The most common choices are:
- For small warts on the face and other parts of the body: laser, electrocoagulation, cryodestructive removal, radio waves;
- For especially large ones on the face and body, plantar warts - surgical, laser, radio waves;
- For more not on the sole - laser; radio waves, liquid nitrogen removal;
- For small footbed - laser.
Sometimes the choice also depends on the patient's general health, age and even the type of activity (for some professions the presence of scars on the face or neck is unacceptable). In the latter case, only an expensive laser removal is possible. In other situations, an individual approach is used.