What are flat warts

Flat warts are relatively unfamiliar to many people, and most people don’t even know what flat warts are. Flat warts are a relatively common skin disease in clinical practice. Flat warts can grow in many places, including the face, legs, and other parts of the body.

1. Flat warts are a viral skin disease. Its pathogen is the same as common warts, which are skin growths caused by infection with papillomaviruses HPV3 and HPV5. It manifests as flat papules that are scattered, soft in texture, smooth on top, millet to mung bean in size, light brown or above the skin surface. It often occurs on exposed parts such as the face and back of the hands, and is extremely contagious.

2. Flat warts are actually what people often call rat warts, also called water monkeys. Because it does not cause obvious itching or pain, it is usually discovered by accident. It can be seen that the flat warts on the patients' faces are the size of needles, rice grains or even soybeans. Some are round, oval, or polygonal. They feel a bit hard to the touch and look no different from normal skin color. Some are light brown, some are scattered, and some are in clusters. In addition to growing on the face, flat warts can also grow on the hands, arms, and even on the feet and legs.

3. Flat warts will heal without treatment and generally disappear on their own within one to two years. However, for some people, even with active treatment, their condition may not heal for several years or even more than ten years. There are many treatments for this disease, but the effectiveness varies. Generally speaking, the earlier the treatment is, the faster the recovery will be. Most of the treatments are local. In addition to topical application of antiviral drugs such as acyclovir, penciclovir, interferon gel, etc., retinoic acid drugs can also be applied externally. Some people also use laser, freezing and other methods, but improper operation can easily leave local scars. For refractory cases, wart transplantation or wart scraping can be used in combination with topical medications. If necessary, oral or intramuscular immunomodulators or enhancers such as interferon, polyinosin, BCG, etc. can be taken.