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Treatments and drugs
By Mayo Clinic staffIf your warts aren't causing discomfort, you may not need treatment. But if your symptoms include itching, burning and pain or if visible warts are causing emotional distress, your doctor can help you clear an outbreak with medications or surgery. However, the lesions are likely to recur after treatment.
Medications
Genital warts treatments that can be applied directly to your skin include:
- Imiquimod (Aldara, Zyclara). This cream appears to boost your immune system's ability to fight genital warts. Avoid sexual contact while the cream is on your skin. It may weaken condoms and diaphragms and may irritate your partner's skin.
- Podophyllin and podofilox (Condylox). Podophyllin is a plant-based resin that destroys genital wart tissue. Your doctor must apply this solution. Podofilox contains the same active compound, but can be safely applied by you at home. Your doctor may want to administer the first application of podofilox, and will recommend precautionary steps to prevent the medication from irritating surrounding skin. Never apply podofilox internally. Additionally, this medication isn't recommended for use during pregnancy.
- Trichloroacetic acid (TCA). This chemical treatment burns off genital warts. TCA must always be applied by a doctor.
Don't try to treat genital warts with over-the-counter wart removers. These medications aren't intended for use in the moist tissues of the genital area. Using over-the-counter medications for this purpose can cause even more pain and irritation.
Surgery
You may need surgery to remove larger warts, warts that don't respond to medications, or — if you're pregnant — warts that your baby may be exposed to during delivery. Surgical options include:
- Freezing with liquid nitrogen (cryotherapy). Freezing works by causing a blister to form around your wart. As your skin heals, the lesions slough off, allowing new skin to appear. You may need repeated cryotherapy treatments.
- Electrocautery. This procedure uses an electrical current to burn off warts.
- Surgical excision. Your doctor may use special tools to cut off warts. You'll need local anesthesia for this treatment.
- Laser treatments. This approach, which uses an intense beam of light, can be expensive and is usually reserved for very extensive and tough-to-treat warts.
- Habif TP. Genital warts. In: Habif TP. Clinical Dermatology: A Color Guide to Diagnosis and Therapy. 5th ed. Edinburgh, U.K.; New York, N.Y.: Mosby Elsevier; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/page.do?eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00020-1&isbn=978-0-7234-3541-9&sid=1095050809&type=bookPage§ionEid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00020-1--s0020&uniqId=229999267-4#4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00020-1--s0020. Accessed Dec. 13, 2010.
- Genital HPV infection: Fact sheet. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/std/HPV/STDFact-HPV.htm. Accessed Dec. 13, 2010.
- Breen E, et al. Condylomata acuminata (anogenital warts). http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Dec. 13, 2010.
- Douglas JM. Papillomavirus. In: Goldman L, et al. Cecil Medicine. 23rd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2008. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/191371208-2/0/1492/0.html#. Accessed Dec. 13, 2010.
- Making sense of your Pap and HPV test results. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/std/hpv/pap/default.htm. Accessed Dec. 14, 2010.
- Special procedures: The Pap test. American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. http://www.acog.org/publications/patient_education/bp085.cfm. Accessed Dec. 15, 2010.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, et al. Recommendations on the use of quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine in males — Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). MMWR Recommendations and Reports. 2011:60;1705.
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