Wart Questions

My son has a plantar wart on his foot and a fairly large wart on the palm of his hand...I know they aren't dangerous (they are caused by a form of HPV), but I also know how common they are in children. I was surprised, though, at how long they take to treat. I tried "freezing" them, I tried duct tape (instructions for this remedie can be found online)...but what ended up working the best was Compound W. I treated his warts for several weeks, they change (sometimes turn black)but very slowly they go away. It's been about 2 1/2 months and they are almost gone. So, don't worry and be patient. They will go away.

I wouldn't get too freaked out! Most people have warts as children... they are a common virus, and it takes awhile to build immunity, which is why adults don't get them as much. My daughter (6) has two on her feet!! I'm horrified about the one because it is a plantars wart, which is on the bottom of her foot and grows up into the foot, and has gotten bigger. She is taking gymnastics and I have to think that may be where she picked it up (bare feet everywhere), so hopefully this will be it and she won't get more. But they are highly contagious, so make sure you wash whatever touches it. After several weeks of putting over the counter stuff on them, hers aren't much better, so I am actually taking her to see the dr. tomorrow. I had a plantars wart in college and it got very painful, and I don't want hers to grow anymore. But warts of any kind are definitely stubborn suckers, so don't get discouraged if it doesn't go away very quickly. Under her arm may be hard to treat due to the friction, but you can try buy those pads with the medicine (salycylic acid) and see if they will stick. I've also Googled and found people saying to put duct tape on them (somehow the lack of air can 'suffocate' them). Eventually it should 'die' and fall off. Good luck and don't freak out!! They're common!

My nephews (ages 4 and 6) also had quite a few warts on their body a couple of months ago. My sister took them to the doctor and he applied medicine to them just as your doctor did. He told my sister that it's common problem in children and they usually contact it from other children. They are in preschool and kindergarten so that is more than likely how they contacted them. I'm not sure how your daughter may have contacted them ~ it could've been at any public place where children play (i.e., Chuck E Cheese, play area at the mall, etc.) My sister was freaking out a little bit, too and they took a while to finally go away. My nephews were never in any pain from them either. Hope this helps to ease your worries a little bit. :-)

Keep reading through the pages on webmd or any other reputable source. Sure, the wart is HPV, but as another posted mentioned it is likely not the HPV that leads to cervical cancer and freaks people out. Unsightly? Yes. Dangerous? Probably not. Keep following the course of treatment your doctor suggested or research how to treat skin warts. Your child will be okay.

Warts are usually nothing to worry about. In fact they say a wart will die on it own. The problem is that it takes 6 to 7 years so they can become pretty big and depending where they are located painful. If you have any concerns about how it looks call your doctor.

Did your doctor tell you it was HPV or did you come to that conclusion on your own?

Please go to www.webmd.com and educate yourself about HPV. The Human Papiloma Virus is most commonly spread through sexual contact and found in the genital area, but sometimes the anal area and throat. Some can be found in other areas of the body. While I am certainly no doctor, I would venture to guess that

"it is likely not dangerous HPV but if it is, it isn't the type that leads to cervical cancer."

So again, not all warts (even if it is HPV) lead to cervical cancer which is the 'dangerous' wart.

Please read through all the information to learn more. You'll soon find that you don't need to panic. To ease your mind, just type in 'wart' in webmd and read up on it.

Wow...after reading your edit, you sure sound offended by my suggestion. If you felt insulted by my post, that certainly wasn't my intention...at any rate, a wart under the armpit is nothing to worry about and hopefully you aren't.