Could You Have Avoided Your Wart?

Are you looking down at your hand and wondering how you got that wart on your knuckle? Do you wonder if there’s something that you did that caused it to arrive uninvited onto your hand? Could the old wives’ tale hold true: Did I ever hold or come in contact with a toad or a frog?

If you have questions surrounding the origin of your warts, here’s a quick guide for you about how warts appear on your body.

• You have a wart on your body due to a virus called human papillomavirus (HPV). It is not because you came in contact with a toad or frog!
• There is no other cause of warts on your body besides HPV. If you have a wart, it is from this viral infection.
• HPV is contagious. Therefore, if you touch a doorknob that someone with HPV touched, you may contract it.
• Your warts can take months or even a year before they appear, so it is nearly impossible to discover the original source of your infection.
• If you have an open wound or scratch (no matter how tiny) it greatly increases your susceptibility to contracting the virus.
• If you have a weakened or impaired immune system, you are more likely to get a wart after being exposed to the virus.

To help prevent the spread of warts in your home or workplace, be sure to clean frequently touched items such as doorknobs, refrigerator handles and light switches. Do not share a bath towel with someone who has warts. Keep your hands clean and discontinue biting your nails.

Medical Dermatology Specialists provides a variety of wart treatment options depending on your specific type of wart and past treatment attempts.  Call our office today to schedule your wart treatment appointment.