Warts and verrucas

Who can get warts?

Most people have warts at some time during their life, usually before the age of 20. Warts are more common in children and teenagers than they are in adults. They are uncommon in babies.

Some people are more likely to get warts, such as those who have:

• atopic eczema, or
• weak immune systems (for example, following treatment for cancer, after an organ transplant, or due to an illness, such as AIDS).

Research has shown that warts on the hands can also be more common in people whose job involves handling meat, such as butchers and abattoir (slaughterhouse) workers. The reason for this is not known.

Warts are harmless but contagious

Warts can look unattractive, but they are usually harmless. They often clear up without treatment, but treatment can help to get rid of them more quickly. Warts are not normally painful, although verrucas can sometimes hurt.

Warts are very contagious. The skin cells in warts release thousands of viruses, so close skin-to-skin contact can pass on the infection. It is also possible to catch the infection indirectly from an object such as a towel. It can take weeks, or even months, for a wart or verruca to appear after you have caught the infection.

Genital warts

Genital warts occur on the genitals and around the rectum. They should not be treated at home. See Useful links for further information about genital warts, including how they are treated.

The skin cells in warts release thousands of viruses, so close skin-to-skin contact can pass on the infection.

Symptoms of warts and verrucas

There are several different types of warts and they also vary in size and shape. For example, the size of a wart can range from 1mm to over 1cm.

Warts are not normally painful, although warts under your fingernails, or on the soles of your feet (verrucas), can sometimes hurt.

You may only have one or two warts, or lots can develop on the same area of your skin. Some warts tend to affect particular parts of the body.

Common warts

Common warts (verruca vulgaris) are firm and raised, with a rough surface that can look a bit like a cauliflower. They can occur anywhere, but are most common on the hands (knuckles and fingers), elbows and knees.

You may have one, or several, common warts, but you will usually have less than 20.

Verrucas

Verrucas (plantar warts) are warts that occur on the soles of your feet. However, they can also occur on the heels and toes.

Verrucas do not stick up from the surface of the skin. Instead, the weight of your body pushing down on them makes them grow back into your skin, which can be painful.

Verrucas often have a black dot in the centre, surrounded by a hard, white area. The dot is the blood supply to the wart, and the white area is the skin of the wart that is closely packed together.

You may have one, or several, verrucas, but usually not more than 20.

Plane warts

Plane warts (verruca plana) are round, flat-topped and usually a yellowish colour. They are sometimes called flat warts, and usually occur in young children, mainly on the hands, face and legs. Plane warts are rare in adults.

You may have between one and one hundred warts, which can sometimes be joined together.

Filiform warts

Filiform warts (verruca filiformis) are long, slender warts. They are common on the thin skin of the eyelids, armpits or neck.

Mosaic warts

Warts that grow in clusters are called mosaic warts. They occur mainly on your hands (palmar warts) and feet.

When to see your GP

You should see your GP if your wart or verruca:

• bleeds,
• changes in appearance, or
• spreads.

Foot specialists, known as podiatrists, can also give advice about verrucas.

Reproduced under the terms of Click-Use Licence number C2009000382. The content of this page has been published under a Click-Use Licence (link this to http://www.opsi.gov.uk/click-use/index) which covers the use of core Crown copyright information. The original material can be found on NHS Choices.