Treatment of warts with trichloroacetic acid

The first thing that everyone who has warts needs to understand is that more than 1/3rd of all cases of genital warts disappear spontaneously without doing anything. For the majority of individuals who have warts that are not bothersome, the best thing to do is Nothing- and that means keep away from health care professionals.

For individuals who have warts which are causing symptoms like burning, itching, bleeding or pain, then one can seek treatment. The majority of other individuals who seek treatment have no symptoms but are bothered by appearance of warts on the genitals. The second thing that all people who have warts should know is that the HPV is never completely destroyed with treatment. The virus has an ability to hide and genital warts can recur after treatment.

The treatment options are as follows:

Trichloroacetic acid (TCA) or bichloroacetic acid can be used to treat venereal warts. The acid works by destroying the top protein layer on the warts and slowly reduces growth. Trichloroacetic acid is only supposed to be applied once a week. To prevent skin irritation, it has to be applied only on the wart.

The health care professional will apply some Vaseline or a thick cream around the normal skin before applying the TCA to the warts.

TCA works about 60%-80% of the time and the effects are not immediate. In most cases, warts take anywhere from 6-10 weeks to disappear. TCA is most effective for the very small warts (< 3 mm).

When TCA is initially applied on the wart, it does sting for a few minutes. Individuals who have sensitive skin should be forewarned, TCA can cause moderate pain, severe irritation and blister formation it if gets on normal skin. Individuals who have large warts > 5 mm, should not apply TCA. TCA can be quite painful when more of it is applied to skin.

Because of the potential for complications, TCA applications for warts is only performed by health care professionals. Home use of high strength TCA is not recommended.