Updated: 04/23/2021 15:29:33

Expert: Pogrebnoy Stanislav Leonidovich

*Review of the best according to the editors of expertology.ru. About the selection criteria. This material is subjective in nature, does not constitute advertising and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before purchasing, consultation with a specialist is required.

At the very beginning of the review of medications for warts, it is necessary to warn: only after seeing a dermatologist can an accurate diagnosis be made and find out whether the formation is suspicious for malignancy. Not every elevation above the surface of the skin can be a wart, that is, a benign tumor and a derivative of the epidermis. In some cases (old age, pain, discoloration, bleeding) we are talking about malignant skin tumors, among which basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma or melanoma are often found.

Attention!

Any attempts to remove an unusual “pseudowart” that is bothering a person on their own, without consulting a doctor, can lead to an outbreak of metastasis and generalization of the malignant process, which will significantly reduce life time.

Therefore, this rating is intended for those people who actually have ordinary or vulgar warts, which are most often found on the arms and legs, do not differ in color from neighboring areas of the skin, and have a rough surface. Additionally, there are such varieties of warts as flat and senile. Separate formations are condylomas. It makes no sense to fight senile and flat warts, since in the first case they will appear again, and in the second case their localization often includes the face, and this should be dealt with by a specialist - a dermatocosmetologist.

In the same case, if we are talking about ordinary warts, then it is possible to remove them yourself at home, without resorting to laser technologies, surgical excision and electrocoagulation. This rating of remedies for warts includes local cauterizing preparations, products that soften the skin and facilitate subsequent removal - keratolytics. Also considered are means for removing warts using low temperatures, and some antiviral and immunotropic drugs aimed at suppressing viral infection.

This rating of do-it-yourself wart removal drugs includes prices for each item. The price will be average for pharmacies of all forms of ownership, and will be valid for the end of 2022. Opens a list of drugs with cauterizing and mummifying activity against warts.

What do they really look like?

Very often, patients who come to see me ask to remove a papilloma or several of them and indicate a pigmented nevus, fibropapilloma or wart. Once I was offered a tick to remove a papilloma (I’m not kidding):

I consider it necessary to clearly define what papilloma is and how it differs from other skin neoplasms. Most often this is a small, 1-3 mm skin formation on a thin stalk. There are three main differences between papilloma and other skin formations. First, the leg is always thinner than the top. Secondly, the consistency of papilloma is always softer than the surrounding skin. Third, the size of the papilloma is usually small - no more than 5 mm. The photo below shows a typical papilloma.

Treatment of mucous membranes with HPV in men

When treating manifestations of the papilloma virus on the mucous membrane in men, rectal suppositories VIFERON are also used, which will help get rid of the unpleasant manifestations of the virus and will help strengthen the immune system.

Without consulting a urologist, it is not recommended to use any medicinal creams and ointments, self-medicate, or even refuse therapy prescribed by a doctor. If left untreated, condylomas can grow, covering more and more territories and affecting the urethra and other internal organs. The development of complications can be prevented by timely consultation with a specialist and the use of antiviral drugs.

How to get rid of papillomas?

There are only two main methods of treating papillomas

1. The simplest and most effective method of treatment is the removal of papillomas using various methods ( laser, radio wave surgery, electrocoagulation
   , etc.). In most cases, a one-time complete removal of papillomas from the entire body is sufficient. I will tell you in more detail about how papillomas are removed using radio wave surgery in our clinic below.
2. Removing papillomas at home
   has recently become a very popular method . Most often, this happens with the help of two types of drugs - acid solutions with names like “Super Celandine” and a mixture of dimethyl ether and propane (the popular drug “Cryopharma”). I can’t say anything about the effectiveness of these two methods, because... I have never removed papillomas this way.

IMPORTANT!!!!

Please do not diagnose yourself with papilloma based on research on the Internet. Before using the above drugs, you should always see an oncologist and make sure that what you are going to remove at home is really a papilloma. If the diagnosis is made incorrectly and any of these liquids are applied to the pigmented nevus, the consequences can be extremely sad.

The best antiviral and immune remedies for warts

Finally, in conclusion of the rating of drugs for reducing warts, we need to consider drugs that not only act locally, but also produce a systemic effect. We are talking about a group of antiviral and immunomodulatory drugs. They are appropriate to use in the complex treatment of warts when the human papillomavirus persists in the body against the background of a low immune response. They are indicated for various immunodeficiencies and other pathological conditions.

It makes no sense to prescribe immunomodulatory and antiviral therapy to a person who has only one vulgar wart, which, most likely, can be dealt with on his own. But in the event that there is recurrent condylomatosis with damage to the anogenital zone, with the presence of a herpetic infection in the body, such remedies will be indicated.

By themselves, they do not treat warts, and after taking pills or injections, these formations do not dissolve or fall off. But immune drugs prevent recurrence, or the formation of warts in new places. Let's consider tablet and local preparations, and the most famous of them is ordinary oxolinic ointment.

Oxolinic ointment (dioxotetrahydroxytetrahydronaphthalene)

Rating: 4.9

We are all accustomed to the fact that oxolinic ointment is produced to lubricate the nasal passages as a means of prevention during a flu epidemic. But for an antiviral effect on warts, a completely different ointment is needed, with a concentration 6 times stronger, or 3%. If you managed to buy such an ointment, then you need to lubricate the warts from one to 3 times a day for a long time, which can last from a month to two months. It is possible to lubricate the wart with ointment at night, followed by applying wax paper under the bandage so that the ointment works for a long time. This remedy helps to significantly reduce the activity of herpes viruses, papillomaviruses and molluscum contagiosum. The Tula Pharmaceutical Factory produces oxolinic ointment, and a 10 g tube with a concentration of 3% costs 340 rubles. This is significantly more expensive than the usual 0.25% nasal ointment, which costs 20-30 rubles.

Advantages and disadvantages

The advantage of oxolinic ointment is its chemical inertness, the ability to combine antiviral treatment with the application of keratolytic drugs, and also be used as preliminary therapy before cryodestruction. So, if the patient notices that chemical removal of the wart or destruction with liquid nitrogen causes a relapse (which indicates the activity of the virus), then the preliminary use of oxolinic ointment can significantly reduce the wart’s ability to recur. The downside is a rather inconvenient and lengthy course, more designed to “starve out the virus” in conditions of immunodeficiency. Therefore, if a person wants a quick effect, then this method is not suitable for him.

Isoprinosine (Groprinosin, Normomed)

Rating: 4.8

Isoprinosine is a strong immunostimulant and is used for many viral diseases, both acute and chronic form. The first include influenza, measles, chickenpox, monocytic tonsillitis (or infectious mononucleosis). And among chronic viral conditions there is papillomavirus infection, which most often causes warts. The drug is available in 500 mg tablets, and the immunostimulating effect is associated with the expression of receptors in the T-helper population, and with an increase in the activity of cytotoxic lymphocytes. It is necessary to use the drug 6-8 tablets per day for an adult, with the current dosage of 50 mg per kilogram of body weight per day, if divided into 3 doses. Duration of treatment is from 1 to 2 weeks. A package of 30 tablets, which is unlikely to last an adult for a week, is quite expensive - 1,100 rubles. It is produced by Luzomedicamenta of Portugal.

This remedy must be prescribed by a doctor based on low immunogram values, and usually one or two warts are completely insufficient to waste 1000 rubles. Therefore, the prescription of isoprinosine will be justified only in case of high activity of the virus according to the results of tests, for example, determination of antibodies in blood plasma and PCR for human papillomavirus.

Advantages and disadvantages

The disadvantage of this remedy, as mentioned above, is the inability to cope with warts without local treatment. All immune agents are preventative. Isoprinosine can be used to “cover up” against the background of high viral activity in the body, and this will avoid relapses and the appearance of new warts to replace old ones. The relative disadvantage is the high price, but the advantage is the ability to influence the immune system in a systemic manner and develop the body’s resistance not only to the human papillomavirus, but also to increase resistance during an epidemic of influenza and adenoviral infection.

How is papillomas removed?

In our clinic, papillomas are removed using radio wave surgery. Just watch this short video and many questions will disappear by themselves.

The papilloma is fixed with special tweezers, after which a loop-shaped instrument is cut off from the skin at the base. At the moment of contact with the skin, a high-frequency radio wave is concentrated at the end of the instrument, which evaporates papilloma cells and at the same time “glues” blood vessels together. As a rule, anesthesia is not required for this procedure - the pain is comparable to epilation with tweezers. In rare cases, pain relief is performed with EMLA cream.

What are immunomodulators

Immunomodulatory agents include drugs of a chemical and biological nature that can modulate (inhibit or stimulate) immune responses. At the same time, the immunological effect of immunomodulators depends on the initial state of a person’s immunity: these drugs reduce high and increase low levels of immunity. This postulate especially applies to interferon preparations. Immunotherapy also includes treatment methods based on the use of immunotropic agents for diseases in the pathogenesis of which there are disorders affecting the immune system.

The main criterion for prescribing immunomodulators is the clinical picture of the disease (acute or chronic infectious-inflammatory process), which is accompanied by a decrease in immune parameters and is difficult to treat. In this case, immunomodulators play the role of the main assistant, which promotes effective therapy and relieves the manifestations of many diseases.

Since HPV infection is also a disease that is quite difficult to combat, and the outcome of treatment depends on the state of the immune system, various immunomodulators are widely used in the treatment of this infection.

Briefly about the main thing:

If you decide to get rid of papillomas, there are 2 ways: The first is to remove papillomas in the clinic, preferably from an oncologist. The advantages of this method are obvious - maximum efficiency and safety. The second method is removal at home using drugs that can be bought in pharmacies. The advantage of this method is its low cost, however, for safe removal, I recommend first consulting with an oncologist. If treatment of papillomas with none of the above methods is effective, it is worth checking your immunity. To do this, it is better to consult an immunologist.

Have you decided to part with your papillomas? This can be done at addresses in St. Petersburg (Asafieva 7/1)

Prevention

After removing papillomas, it is recommended to prevent their formation. To do this, you need to undergo a course of treatment with the following drugs 2 times a year:

• Isoprinosine and Groprinosine. Antiviral and immunomodulatory agents increase the body's resistance to the HPV virus.
• Rimantadine. This is a powerful drug that destroys the shell of the papillomavirus. Can be used after contact with an HPV carrier.
• Podophyllin. Includes natural components that damage virus cells and prevent their division.
• Acyclovir. The tablets affect HPV. They are integrated into the genetic material of the virus, which prevents the growth of papillomas.

To avoid becoming infected with HPV, it is recommended:

• get vaccinated;
• visit a doctor annually and take the necessary tests to detect the virus at an early stage;
• observe the rules of personal hygiene;
• use condoms;
• lead a healthy lifestyle.