You need to understand the differences among moles, skin tags and
warts. Despite some cosmetic similarities, these are all quite
different conditions. As such a plantar wart treatment may be different
from how a skin tag or mole would be handled. However, certain surgical
techniques such as freezing, burning or excision (cutting it out) may be
applied to all three by doctors.
Moles
result when cells in the skin, called melanocytes, grow in a cluster
with tissue surrounding them. Moles are a common condition and most
people will have between 10 and 40 moles. They normally vary in color
and can be flesh-colored, brown, pink or tan. What you need to be
concerned about with moles is that skin cancer (melanoma) can begin in
an existing mole or appear as a growth on the skin that may look like an
unusual mole.
It is very important that before you try any form
of over-the-counter or home remedy type mole treatment, you learn to
identify unusual moles and, if you find any or discover any mole that
seems odd or suspicious, have them checked medically. To give you some
visual idea of the differences, there are pictures of ordinary moles
and unusual ones (called dysplastic nevi by doctors) here:
http://www.cancer.gov/cancerinfo/wyntk/moles-and-dysplastic-nevi/page8
Advances
in treatment of melanoma have led to an increasing percentage of very
early stage detection when treatment is easiest and most successful. If
you have a very large number of ordinary moles and/or any unusual moles
(dysplastic nevi), then learning about early detection and seeking
medical attention is extremely important. Don't neglect it.
Skin
tags (acrochordons) are usually small and generally harmless skin
growths that most often occur after middle age. They actually stick out
of the skin and may have a small and narrow stalk connecting the tag to
the surface of the skin. Generally painless, skin tags do not grow or
change though they can be irritated if they are rubbed by clothing or
other materials. Though usually quite small, some may be up to a half
inch long. They appear to be more common in people with diabetes or who
are overweight.
Medically, there is no reason to remove skin tags
unless they are cosmetically unattractive or become irritated. The
usual medical procedures for removal are excision, freezing or burning
them off. If however, there is a change in the appearance of a skin
tag, seeing your medical practitioner is advisable.
Warts are
usually painless skin growths caused by a virus. While mostly harmless
they can be extremely unpleasant cosmetically and embarrassing and they
can, occasionally, itch or hurt. Plantar warts which are those found on
the soles of the feet can be particularly unpleasant because of
repeated irritation caused by walking. They may become extremely
painful and large numbers of plantar warts on the feet can even cause
difficulty in walking as well as running.
Warts often go away on
their own, though it can take up to two years which can seem like a very
long time. Over-the-counter medications are often successful in
removing warts. However, these treatments should definitely not be used
on your face or on genital or anal warts. For other types of warts it
may also help to actually file down the wart while it is damp before
applying OTC medications.
In connection with plantar wart treatment you can also find bandage-like cushions which can help relieve pain and pressure.
Stronger
medications are available by prescription and as with moles and skin
tags, surgery (excision), freezing, burning or laser treatments can be
used.
You may have heard about this interesting method for wart
removal that's known as the Duct Tape method. What you do is put a piece
of duct tape over the wart for six days. Then take it off in the
evening, wet the wart and scrape it down with a file. Put tape back on
the next morning for another six days. You keep doing this until the
wart disappears but not for more than 2 months. This method seems to
work as well as having the warts medically frozen off.
While warts
are contagious, getting infected from or infecting another person is
infrequent. Still, avoiding contact with a wart on someone else is a
good idea. If you file down a wart, be sure to wash the file carefully
since you don't want to spread the virus around - and don't forget to
wash your hands equally carefully after touching any of your own warts.
Warts are generally harmless, but you should seek medical assistance if:
* There are signs of infection or bleeding that can not be stopped easily by light pressure.
* Over-the-counter or other self-care remedies failed and you want it removed
* The wart is painful
* You have genital or anal warts
* You have diabetes or a weakened immune system
* Any changes in the color or appearance of the wart occur.
With
this background and keeping the cautions in mind, you should be much
better prepared to evaluate and decide on whichever form of mole, skin
tag, wart or plantar wart treatment you want to pursue.
