Warts are a common skin growth that occur almost anywhere on your body. One of the most common types of wart is the flat wart, or verruca plana. Flat warts occur when the superficial surface of the skin becomes infected with a strain of the human papillomavirus, or HPV. Although many flat warts go away within two years of the infection, some may appear in more prominent areas of the body, such as the face, that you may want removed immediately. This can be done in several ways.
Step 1
Apply duct tape to the flat wart to soften and remove the outer layer of the wart tissue. Keep the duct tape on for at least a few days before removing it. Once the tape has been removed, soak the area by submersing the affected skin in the bathtub or with a washcloth. This should soften the skin further.
Step 2
Coat the flat wart with an over-the-counter wart removal product containing salicylic acid. Salicylic acid is a keratolytic agent, meaning it has the ability to break down keratin in the skin. Keratin is a protein that makes up a large portion of the skin and flat warts. By breaking down the outer layer of keratin, salicylic acid can slowly wear down the wart until it is no longer on the skin.
Step 3
Use a pumice stone to remove the softened tissue. With both duct tape and salicylic acid treatments, after soaking the affected wart in water, take a pumice stone or nail file and gently remove the outer softened tissue. Perform this process after each application.
Step 4
Talk with your doctor about medical interventions, such as cryotherapy to help get rid of your flat warts. Cryotherapy involves the application of liquid nitrogen to the wart affected skin. A blister forms beneath the wart, allowing the wart tissue to be removed off as the dead blister tissue falls off. Other treatments may include laser removal, electrodessication or injections of the medication Bleomycin.
Things You'll Need
- Duct tape
- Salicylic acid wart remover
- Washcloth
- Pumice stone
- Nail file
