Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1890-10-23
Warts-How to Treat Them

Luckily for the peace of mind =,
those who desire and prize baant;f0i
hahdS' warts are principally confined
10 ch'iahood aud early youth, and
generally disappear without treatment
after time. They are only an IN.
noyance. though sometimes they ara
so aggravated in form or location as n
be sore, painful, or very inconvenient
These unwelcome eXcrescences ar.
principally an abnormal growth of the
paplll@ OF the skin, and that they are
confined chiefly to early life is doubt.
less due to the fact that the processes
of growth are then so strong and
vigorous. 1t is "A curiosity that they
appear only where the victim is in GOOD
health, with Ill the forces of the system
in active operation. i leir presence il
not therefore, to be looked upon as in
any sense an indication of form Of
disease. 1t is generally the part of
wisdom to pay little attention to warts,
and it is certainly unwise, as is some.
times done, to distigure the hands or
fingers with ugly and permanent scars
III order to remove annoyances which
in short time will doubtless take to
themselves wings and disappear.
There are gentler methods of treat.
ment. however, which may be resorted
to. and which will frequently, if not
generally prove efficacious. Perhaps
the simplest application, one which is
in any case entirely harmless. and
which by patient attention is likely to
drive away the wart, is the use of
strong solution of washing soda, from
four 10 six times daily. OF acid appli.
cations there are a number, all Of
which are to be adopted only with the
greatest care, since the presence Of
strong acids upon the normal skin may
cause pain, soreness. and even dis
hgurement. In making these applica-
tions, ii the operator has not the skill
or the patience to work very carefully,
it is well to cover the skin Immediately
surrounding the wart with a coating of
wax, vaseIine, or strong solution of
soda to neutraliZe the acid. in case it
overllows the intended limitx The
acids which may be used for this pur-
pose, in the order of their strength and
danger, are simple acetic. the glacial
acetic saturate solution of salicylic,
nitric, and sulphuric. The two last
named are very dangerous, and the
best way to use them is to let them re-
main at the drug store. The appllca-
ton of any of these or of nitrate of
silver Ounar caustic) produces dead
film or skin on top of the wart, which
in day or two may be scraped or
peeled off, and in this way the process
is repeated till the wart has disappear
ed. Even them there is no assurance
that the roots have been DESTROYED, and
it is quite among the possibilities that
the whole work may in short time
have to be done over.
Other methods of treating warts
include ligature, by which a siIken
thread is drawn tightly about beneath
the wart and frightened till the part is
cut off. This treatment can only be
used in case of favorable formations,
it is not certain to produce a per-
manent cure, and-it savors of
brrt, iiy. So also does the use of the
knife whether for the purpose OF
'scraping" out the abnormal growth,
or OF rultng it clearly away. Neither
method viii commend itself, except IN
extreme cases, and then it is better to
employ skilled hand.-G0od House
L1'plyyyJ-