Warts and All

I had one common wart located on my left little finger which I showed to my Dermatologist. Common Warts are hardy and are caused by the HPV virus (ewww, sounds gross!). Since its location is on the outermost layer of skin,  Doc said my immune system is as concerned with it as much as I would be concerned for the far-away state of Alaska (I am in the Midwest, USA). That is why, if left untreated and on its own, the wart may take my immune system over a year to zap.

No thanks; I wanted quick action, so he recommended the over-the-counter Compound W Fast Acting Liquid: a bottled concentration of Salicylic Acid (17% -- at this strength, it is never to be applied to the face). I was to apply it once at night on my little finger (it stung!) and cover the wart with a strip of duct tape while I slept. Personally, I chose not to apply it every night; more like every 3rd or 4th night. I stopped after a couple of weeks. Doc says it's when skin lines are seen on the spot once again that the wart can be considered succesfully treated.

Salicylic Acid can burn-off that outer layer of skin!

How did I catch this since warts are contagious? Who knows.  My son had several warts on his dry chapped hands. And he probably got it from touching the public pianos he'd practice on while in college.