A wart is a growth of the epidermis that has become hard and looks like a bumpy lump reminiscent of a cauliflower.
How does a wart develop?
A wart is caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV) virus. This virus can cause the skin to divide more quickly, causing a bump to form. This bump then becomes hard and is often numb.
Is it dangerous?
Having warts is not harmful. However, you can infect other people with the virus, which can also cause them to get warts. This transmission takes place through direct contact, but the virus can also be transmitted in damp areas such as the swimming pool or the showers at a sports club.
How can you prevent it?
Preventing warts is difficult. If you carry the virus, warts may develop sooner or later. However, you can avoid direct physical contact with someone who has warts and it is advisable to always wear slippers in the showers of the sports club.
Where are warts most common?
Warts most commonly occur on hands and feet. This is because we become infected most quickly in those places. Think of walking barefoot in the swimming pool or sports showers and with your hands you have the most physical contact with others. Warts can appear on the entire body.
How do you remove a wart?
Most warts disappear on their own after a year. If you do not want to wait for this or the wart will remain there for longer, you have a number of options. You can freeze the wart with liquid nitrogen. You can have this done by your GP. The nitrogen causes the wart to freeze and this creates a space between the wart and the skin. After a week, the wart will fall off on its own. In the space that was created between the wart and the skin, the skin has now been given the opportunity to recover. When the wart falls off, the skin has already healed.
You can also get all kinds of remedies at the pharmacy or drugstore to treat your warts yourself. These are often liquids. You treat the skin where the wart is located with a small brush with the liquid. Since the liquid has a very aggressive effect, it is necessary to prevent it from touching healthy skin. You treat the skin for a few days and eventually the wart falls off on its own.
Young people and children
Children and young people suffer from warts relatively more often than adults. This is because they have not yet produced enough antibodies to prevent the warts. As adults you can still get warts, but it is less common.