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Causes
By Mayo Clinic staffWarts are caused by a virus known as the human papillomavirus (HPV). There are 100 or more types of HPV. Some types of HPV cause relatively harmless conditions, such as common warts, while others may cause serious disease, such as cancer of the cervix. And, different types of HPV cause different types of warts.
How warts spread
Like other infectious diseases, wart viruses pass from person to person. You can also get the wart virus indirectly by touching a towel or object used by someone who has the virus. It can take a wart as long as two to six months to develop after exposure to the virus.
Each person's immune system responds to the HPV virus differently, meaning not everyone who comes in contact with HPV develops warts. If you have warts, you can spread the virus to other places on your own body. Warts usually spread through breaks in your skin, such as a hangnail or scrape. Biting your nails also can cause warts to spread on your fingertips and around your nails.
- Warts. American Academy of Dermatology. http://www.aad.org/public/publications/pamphlets/common_warts.html. Accessed. Dec. 28, 2009.
- Androphy EJ, et al. Warts. In: Wolff K, et al. Fitzpatrick's Dermatology in General Medicine. 7th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Medical; 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=2958209. Accessed Dec. 28, 2009.
- Warts. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/print/sec10/ch122/ch122c.html. Accessed Dec. 26, 2009.
- Goldstein BG, et al. Cutaneous warts. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Dec. 28, 2009.
- Berger TG. Dermatologic disorders. In: McPhee SJ, et al. Current Medical Diagnosis and Treatment 2010. 49th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Medical; 2010. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=747. Accessed Dec. 28, 2009.
- Dehghani F, et al. Healing effect of garlic extract on warts and corns. International Journal of Dermatology. 2005;44:612.
- Egawa K, et al. Topical vitamin D3 derivatives for recalcitrant warts in three immunocompromised patients. British Journal of Dermatology. 2004;150:367.
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