Plantar warts in the child: treatment, causes and symptoms

Many of us have faced unsightly malignancies on the skin - warts. In addition to the fact that these formations are unaesthetic, they significantly complicate a person's life due to possible trauma about clothing. Often plantar warts cause painful sensations when walking. And if an adult can somehow adapt to it, then the child reacts to discomfort instantly. What are the causes of warts in a child, the treatment by what methods is considered the most effective, what kinds of warts exist - we will deal with all the issues in our article.

What is a wart?

Wart is a neoplasm on the skin, which is often benign. In rare cases, however, there is a potential risk of degeneration of the benign structure into malignant tissue. Warts are caused by the action of the human papillomavirus (HPV) in the body.

Infection with the virus occurs with direct contact of a healthy person with a patient, as well as when using objects of his use. The activity of the virus in the body is manifested only against a background of a number of factors:

• Severe stress or trauma;
• Decreased immunity;
• Increased sweating (on the skin, hands, soles of the feet).

A favorable environment for the spread of the virus is high humidity and heat, so public pools or gyms, public showers - those places, the probability of infection in which the highest. The virus penetrates the human body through micro-traumas of the skin - scratches, cuts. The incubation period is a minimum of several weeks. Over time, the risk of formation becomes less, as the immunity to the virus gradually grows stronger. This applies more to children. Sometimes it is not necessary to consider the occurrence of a wart in a child as a tragedy. Treatment with medicines may not be required.

Types of warts

All neoplasms are conventionally united into four groups:

• Flat warts;
• Ordinary warts;
• Genital warts;
• Senile warts.

Flat warts, which are also called adolescent, usually appear on the skin of children or adolescents. These tumors have a rounded shape, outwardly resemble flat knots, mainly appear on the face and on the outer surface of the hands. The appearance of warts is preceded by skin irritation, therefore, neoplasms often occur in the area of microtrauma - cuts or scratches. Adult people are able to independently monitor their health. With kids everything is different. Parents should be interested in the appearance of a wart on the hand of a child. Treatment should begin with a consultation with a dermatologist.

Ordinary warts are often called vulgar. These neoplasms have a dense structure and are dry, horny tubercles with an uneven surface, which has villi. Warts are characterized by outlined edges and reach the size of a pea. Such formations are often combined, merging into large plaques. Like flat warts, ordinary neoplasms in most cases appear on the hands.

Flat, senile, pointed neoplasms

A kind of wart is a plantar wart in a child. Treatment of this type of pathology is similar to treatment of other types of neoplasms. But the cause of this wart lies in the use of tight shoes not only in children, but also in adults, especially in those who sweat heavily. Plantar warts have a very dense structure, they are dark-gray, dirty-colored outgrowths that cause painful sensations when walking. Sometimes an adult can temporarily lose his ability to work due to a pathological condition.

Genital warts are another type of warts that result from uncleanliness of a person, i.e., in the absence of proper body hygiene. This type of neoplasm appears mainly in the genital area. Pointed condylomas resemble small nodules of pink color, which, as a rule, merge and form a structure of soft consistency.

Unlike ordinary warts, flat warts and genital warts, having a viral nature of origin, senile warts arise due to age specific features of human skin. Keratomas appear to look like dark formations (black, gray, brown) with a loose structure impregnated with sebum. Star warts are mainly formed on the face or neck, as well as along the trunk.

In the risk group, children

The emergence of warts is more susceptible to people with high sensitivity to HPV, as well as individuals whose immunity is reduced due to various diseases - diabetes, HIV, oncological pathologies. Also at risk are children. Treatment of flat warts of children on a par with other types of neoplasms is similar to the treatment of warts in an adult. It's just that sometimes a child may not need therapy.

Often toddlers are prone to plantar warts. Ordinary neoplasms appear on the handles, along the body, flat warts - on the face of the child. Treatment of pathology gives good results in most cases. However, it is important to understand why the pathology manifests itself in children in general:

1. First, children's immunity is imperfect, and can not always cope with the action of the virus, in contrast to the protective functions of an adult.
2. Secondly, children are mobile and often during the game can injure and scratch the skin, thereby opening the door for the virus to enter the body.
3. Thirdly, kids are constantly in close contact with each other, playing with common toys, so there is always the risk of contracting the virus from a sick child.

It is important to remember that the appearance of a tumor on the skin of the baby should at least interest the parents.

Baby warts

As mentioned earlier, neoplasms can occur in babies everywhere. On the skin of the hands, the back of the hands, on the fingers there are not only single warts, but their clusters. As a rule, such warts are painless. They are white or gently pink, but sometimes they are dark red with a bright spot in the center.

In addition to the ordinary, a plantar wart in a child may also appear. Treatment of tumors is important to begin immediately. Appearance of such warts resembles rounded tubercles of different colors - from pale yellow to brownish-brown. Inside there is a depression, similar to a crater. As the growth of the wart changes - at first it looks like a shiny ball, with the passage of time becomes porous, uneven.

Externally it is very similar to corn, but there is one characteristic feature in the neoplasm: when cutting the upper layer of the wart, black dots are visible - these are clogged blood vessels.

As mentioned earlier, there is a risk of degeneration of a benign neoplasm into a malignant tissue. In addition, it is not uncommon for warts to germinate inside and form a callus. In order not to risk health, especially the health of the baby, one should immediately consult a dermatologist, who will carefully examine the warts on the child's feet . Treatment, appointed by a specialist, will be the most effective and safe.

Symptomatics

The most obvious sign of the formation of plantar warts on the child's foot is the appearance of a round and clearly delineated seal.

Neoplasm with a smooth surface grows, gradually reaching a size of several centimeters. The tissues surrounding the wart and color, as a rule, do not change. With the passage of time, a change in the formation takes place - it becomes roughened, more coarse. Single warts can merge into whole areas - such a situation occurs with active action in the body of the virus.

If the warts belong to the group of normal neoplasms, they appear on the hands or on the surface of other parts of the child's body. When in contact with clothing, they can cause painful sensations, change in size, bleed. Plantar warts lead to discomfort when walking due to rubbing the skin against the inside of the shoe. Children at the same time are capricious, any movement causes them anxiety. Unexpectedness can become a wart on the face of a child. Treatment in this case is simply necessary in order to save the baby from psychological discomfort.

Diagnosis and treatment

The emergence of warts occurs because of the action of the virus in the body of the IF. Therefore, the first step that must be performed when examining the neoplasm is to make an analysis for the presence of the above virus in the blood, i.e. Perform PCR diagnostics. To clarify the diagnosis, the dermoscopy procedure helps, during which the doctor removes the upper layer of the epithelium. If on the executed cut black points are seen - the clotted capillaries - the probability of that on a human body the wart has developed.

Ultrasound is used for small children, especially this procedure is justified in case of advanced stages of the disease. Ultrasound research helps to determine how far inward the plantar growths have germinated. If there is a fear that the wart has degenerated into a malignant tissue, a dermatologist-oncologist is consulted. Check not only the neoplasm on the body, but also the wart-like warts on the feet of children.

Treatment of neoplasms is complex and is aimed not only at eliminating the cosmetic defect, but also at stopping the action in the human body of the virus that caused the appearance and growth of the wart. Therapy includes the use of medications, the use of various external means and the conduct of cosmetology procedures.

Medication

One of the stages in the treatment of warts is the use of antiviral drugs in order to reduce the activity of the pathogen in the body to zero.

Together with this measure, stimulation of the human immune system is carried out. This is done in order to force the body to fight the disease on its own. Immunotherapy can be performed in many ways, however, the most common of them is the introduction of a special drug "Interferon" in the tumor, which increases the protective functions of the body.

As a stimulant in medicine, antigens can be used. The antigen of mumps is most often used. This is due to the fact that the vast majority of people were vaccinated against this pathology. The antigen activates upon its entry into the body its protective reactions. However, there is one nuance in the course of such treatment - sometimes side effects can occur - a few hours after the manipulation, a person has flu symptoms.

Cosmetic procedures

To eliminate the external defect in cosmetology apply a whole range of procedures.

Treatment of warts with the help of cryotherapy (freezing) is as follows. The neoplasm is affected by liquid nitrogen, so that warts die off and a blister forms, which later disappears. The consequences of this procedure can cause painful sensations, which, however, quickly pass.

Laser therapy is also used, during which the doctor performs moxibustion of the blood vessels in the wart itself. After the procedure, the tissue dies off, the wart is destroyed and disappears.

The use of a laser is an effective method in the fight against neoplasms, however painful and ambiguous, as scarring often remains after the procedure.

Helps in the fight against the disease and surgical intervention. The method of excision is based on the use of an electric needle (scalpel). The wart is excised under local anesthesia. This procedure is resorted to as a last resort, when other methods of treatment do not give the expected effect. This is primarily due to the fact that after excision is likely to form scars.

Warts in a child: treatment

Treatment of warts in children has some features, and it is due primarily to the fact that babies are more susceptible to pain, and the children's skin is tender and more prone to injury.

It should be noted that often warts in children do not require treatment and can go on their own. With the gradual maturation, the immune system of the child is strengthened, and at some point the body copes with the virus and its manifestations - neoplasms. However, in case the wart does not disappear, it is recommended to seek help from a specialist so as not to start the disease, prevent the appearance of new formations, and not to miss the moment of degeneration into a malignant structure. I must say that single warts are better to treat than accumulations of large neoplasms. In addition, the appearance of a wart leads to the disappearance of the skin pattern on the surface of the sole.

If the location of the wart on the skin of the baby is superficial, then for the effective treatment it will be sufficient only the use of ointments and external means. Such therapy is used in the fight against neoplasms on the hands, the body, as well as in cases when a wart appeared on the child's foot.

Treatment will be more radical if there are deeply ingrowing neoplasms. Then various cosmetic procedures are applied. For example, an effective, painless and applicable in therapy of children is a technique using cantharidin. This substance together with salicylic acid cover the surface of the wart. After the procedure, a special bandage is applied, and during the week, salicylic patches are applied at the site of the wart localization. This is done in order to reduce the risk of recurrence of the disease. After some time, the formation is destroyed and disappears.

It is known that the tumor destroys the lines on the skin. So, after recovery, the cutaneous pattern is restored. This happens some time after the wart on the child's foot has collapsed.

Treatment of tumors may be associated with consultations with an orthopedic physician, because often in children with this pathology there is a deformation of the feet.

Prevention and traditional medicine

In order to prevent the formation of warts, you must adhere to certain rules, namely:

• Refuse to use tight shoes, buy shoes from natural materials;
• When the feet are deformed, special orthopedic insoles must be used;
• Constantly care for the soles of the feet - apply cream, foot baths;
• Avoid skin injury;
• Monitor immunity, avoid stressful situations.

If nevertheless warts have appeared, it is necessary to address for the help to experts, in treatment to use antiviral preparations and immunomodulators.

In addition to medicines, there are recipes of traditional medicine that help in the fight against neoplasms. Herbal remedies can be used in case you need to get rid of the wart in a child. Treatment involves the use of plant material. Below are just some of the recipes:

1. Therapy with garlic. Of several heads of the plant, you need to prepare a slurry, add a small amount of flour, as well as vinegar. The resulting remedy should be applied to the wart, covered with adhesive tape and left for a few days. The procedure should be repeated a few days until the wart disappears.
2. Treatment with raw potatoes. From a raw vegetable make a gruel, put on a wart for several hours, tied with a bandage. The procedure is repeated until the tumor disappears.
3. In the fight against warts in folk medicine apply decoctions of wormwood, calendula; Juice celandine, mountain ash. These agents are used in the preparation of compresses, which are applied to the affected warts skin.