Spine - what is it and why does it need to be removed?

Nitrogen removal efficiency

Spica is a viral papilloma that occurs against the background of decreased human immunity due to the presence of HPV in the body. It looks like a flat growth, mainly on the legs or arms with black spots all over the surface. After infection, the virus, being in a suppressed immune state, does not make itself known. When the body’s defenses are weakened, it begins to multiply in cells, mutate, and increase blood flow to the site of localization. Excessive growth of infected mutated cells puts pressure on surrounding tissues, as a result of which a person experiences pain when pressing on the papilloma.

Cryodestruction allows you to remove viral defects on the skin of the palms, soles, and fingers the first time, if they have recently appeared and do not have a large area of distribution. If the roots of the wart have penetrated deep into the dermis, several procedures will be required to burn them out.

Getting rid of spines involves destroying the top layer of the growth, the root that penetrates the skin, and the vessels that feed the formation. If the impact on the neoplasm is insufficient, if part of it remains intact, the pathology will intensify and spread over a larger area.

The nature of the formation and why it needs to be removed?

Spines, depending on their nature, location and individual characteristics of the patient, can be removed in various ways, including radio wave exposure, excision using a laser beam, scalpel, etc.

Each of the existing methods has its own advantages and disadvantages, features and consequences. The most common method used is to cauterize the plantar wart, or thorn, with liquid nitrogen. To understand why this method is one of the most effective, you need to find out the characteristics of the disease.

The thorn, like other types of warts, is an external manifestation of the human papillomavirus (HPV). This virus is extremely common and is present in the vast majority of adults. This degree of prevalence is explained by a simple transmission route. You can become infected with HPV in the following ways:

during sexual intercourse;
when sharing cutlery;
in the process of taking common baths;
through a dirty toilet rim;
while using hygiene items of an infected person.

Warts come in several types and can be located in almost any location. Warts are commonly referred to as growths on the hands and feet, most often occurring on the back of the hand, fingers, and feet.

All of the above types, including plantar warts, or thorns, have a common nature and structure: each wart has a root that goes deep into the epidermis. Its body is permeated with the finest threads, which on the surface of the growth look like small black dots.

All these are characteristic signs of warts, allowing them to be distinguished from neoplasms of a different nature. In particular, the spine is often confused with the callus. You can still distinguish one from the other if you first steam a given area of the skin and remove its stratum corneum.

If we are talking about a wart, then underneath it will appear a surface consisting of small pinkish papillae, riddled with those same black dots. These signs indicate the viral nature of the growth, namely a wart caused by HPV.

Given the high degree of contagiousness of this virus and the simple way it is transmitted, neglecting treatment can lead to negative consequences. First of all, we are talking about its distribution to healthy areas of the skin. In addition, the risk of infecting other people is high.

Important! The virus remains viable on the surface of objects and in liquid media for two hours. If you come into contact with these objects within the specified period of time, a person may become infected with HPV.

Once in the human body, the virus may not manifest itself for a long time. However, it is present in the body, multiplies, remains active and, when appropriate, mainly when immunity is reduced, leads to the formation of various types of warts.

It may take weeks, months or even years between the time of infection and the appearance of the first warts. This largely depends on the level of functioning of the immune system. In any case, once HPV enters the body, it remains in it throughout life, and it is impossible to remove it in any way. Moreover, if warts are not removed in time, their number usually increases.

Nitrogen burning technology

The liquid nitrogen treatment method does not require special preparation from the patient for the procedure. After examining the neoplasm, the doctor will numb the affected area for extensive lesions of the skin; for isolated rashes, the procedure can be performed without analgesics. With the help of cryotherapy, viral skin formations, other skin defects, and core calluses are successfully removed. Nitrogen acts instantly. Local or injectable medications are used as painkillers.

The technology for performing cryodestruction allows the use of a special directed nitrogen-spraying device, medical forceps or scissors, and a cotton swab with a long stem.

A special installation for spraying the drug is used in modern private clinics, and a cotton swab is used in government institutions. It cannot be said that the method of treatment with a spray installation is superior to the second method; the depth of impact is the same, but special equipment makes the procedure much more expensive.

The essence of the method of burning out the spine with liquid nitrogen is to expose the growth to ultra-low temperatures. To do this, the substance is converted into a solid state and stored in special thermal containers.

Before removing the growth, the area of skin around it is treated with antiseptic solutions and the procedure begins. The specialist immerses a cotton swab in a container with nitrogen and applies it with light pressure on the spine. If the procedure is performed with a spray installation, then a special applicator is applied to the lesion site, through which the substance is supplied, or nitrogen is remotely sprayed onto the papilloma through a nozzle, avoiding cold contact with healthy skin.

The substance comes into contact with the skin for 25-30 seconds, after which the doctor takes a break to assess the condition of the growth. After 30-60 seconds, the exposure of the spine to nitrogen is resumed if necessary. The procedure requires from 3 to 7 applications, the roots and cells mutated from the effects of the virus go deep into the skin. To remove papilloma permanently, it is necessary to destroy all cells and vessels feeding the defect with cold.

In places where there is increased friction of the papilloma on shoes or clothing, if the wart is old and extensive, an additional visit to the doctor will be required to remove it no earlier than a month after the wound has healed.

Is it painful to undergo cryodestruction?

Single papillomas do not require anesthesia; the effects are tolerable if the doctor does not apply cold to healthy tissue. The doctor will numb multiple spines that occupy a large area to eliminate pain from the procedure.

During the session, the patient experiences tingling and discomfort on the treated surface; after removing the spine with nitrogen, the treatment area may turn red and swell. If the affected area is large, the growths are removed in a complex manner, the entire limb swells, which is more typical for the feet than for the hands. After the procedure, the patient does not need pain relief and lives a normal life, although the wound may hurt for some time.

Cryotherapy is also available at home. Pharmacies sell special topical preparations that burn out skin growths. These products include: cryopharm aerosol, wartner-cryo. The disadvantages of the drugs are that the patient is not able to independently determine the depth of the diseased cells. Part of the wart will remain in the epidermis, increasing the risk of relapse. If used carelessly, the drugs burn healthy skin around the spine; they must be used with caution so as not to suffer from the consequences of nitrogen burns.

How can you remove the thorn at home?

Onion lotion. A paste is prepared from the onion, poured with 9% vinegar. Cut a hole in the adhesive plaster so that only the wart fits through it, and seal it. Then apply onion pulp to the growth and seal it with another bandage. The lotion is left for 8 hours;
Vinegar dough. It is used when the spine has reached a large size. Using vinegar, knead the dough, thick enough so that it does not flow or fall apart. The skin is first steamed in a soap-soda solution, then the upper part of the wart is cut off. The sore spot is covered with a plaster - as already described above - and vinegar dough is applied to the spine;
You can remove the thorn on your hand with horseradish mixed with grated raw potatoes. This method is the most painless. Its disadvantage is that the lotion will have to be applied for 2 weeks, no less. But this way you can remove a wart on a child’s hand or on women with very delicate skin. If the skin is not characterized as tender, the gruel is made from grated horseradish and garlic;
How to remove a thorn on the legs if several warts appear? An effective and painless method is a nettle compress. This way you can get rid of plantar growths in adults and children. Fresh nettle is turned through a meat grinder, applied to the keratinized feet - having previously steamed the feet in a soap-soda solution - covered with a layer of polyethylene on top, and insulated with woolen socks.

Despite the fact that no unpleasant painful sensations are experienced, the keratinized surface comes off along with papillomas and rods. For women, this method is universal - not only will your feet be cleared of unsightly growths that cause pain when walking, but you will also be able to get rid of the stratum corneum without a pedicure procedure.

How to remove a thorn with one bite, without the use of accompanying components? The method is easy, but not very convenient. You should constantly apply vinegar dropwise to the wart. If you do not apply the patch, you may burn the surrounding skin. And the method is not suitable for the leg - you won’t sit with your leg constantly raised up.

If you are allergic to the patch, it is better to use fresh celandine or pharmaceutical extract. Herbal juice or a drop of extract is applied to the papilloma. Gradually it will decrease and disappear.

Prognosis of treatment and rehabilitation

Cryodestruction of the spine - elimination of the symptoms of the disease. To bring the pathology into deep remission, the patient must eliminate the causes of decreased immunity. It is impossible to get rid of the human papillomavirus forever, but with a strong immune system, the virus sleeps and warts do not appear.

Cauterization of the spine with nitrogen is highly effective the first time, however, with weak immunity, viruses are active and still provoke cell mutations and the growth of papillomas. For treatment to be effective, it is necessary:

increase immunity, walk in the fresh air, toughen up;
review the diet, add vegetables and fruits;
avoid stress and overwork;
bring your weight back to normal;
take a blood sugar test if you suspect diabetes;
normalize hormonal levels;
treat chronic foci of infection.

The rehabilitation period after nitrogen treatment requires limiting physical activity if the spines were on the feet or heels. Apart from treating and caring for the wound, the patient does not have any difficulties during the recovery period.

Plantar warts: treatment, causes, removal

The concept of “plantar warts” rather reflects the location of the warts, rather than the form of the disease and what virus it was caused by.

Before you begin removal, you need to understand what warts on the foot are.

A plantar wart is a flat-shaped wart located on the bottom of the foot. Due to the fact that they are under constant pressure from the whole body, this type of wart can have different shapes, and they are also very painful when walking. They are often confused with calluses, because one of the reasons for the appearance of calluses is wearing tight, narrow, uncomfortable shoes.

As a rule, foot warts are more difficult to remove than other types. This is due to the fact that they are located in inappropriate places and can take deep roots. But with modern treatment methods, yes, as well as with proven folk methods, the foot wart is removed quickly and painlessly.

Removal of plantar warts is carried out by electrocoagulation or, in simple words, cauterization with electric current, freezing with liquid nitrogen, lubrication with concentrated hydrogen peroxide, 20% salicylic acid, 8% podophyllin suspension mixed with a lead patch, laser removal.

There are a number of methods that can be used to remove warts using folk remedies and get rid of tumors, but it is better to take plantar warts seriously and go to a clinic where professionals will make every effort to solve your problem.

Return to contents

Warts on the feet: when should you worry?

It is worth remembering that any wart is not just a growth on the skin, it is a neoplasm that is caused by a virus. Therefore, of course, it is worth taking care of the wart immediately after it appears. First, you need to decide what you have: a callus or a wart. We all know well that any callus is filled with liquid inside and has a convex structure. If the neoplasm has a hard consistency, there is no skin pattern and the upper layer of the skin is inelastic, then, in all likelihood, it is a plantar wart. When first discovered, you should go to the doctor, otherwise after a while the plantar wart will become painful and may get to the point that you simply cannot stand on your leg because of the pain.

Return to contents

Treatment of plantar warts

There are times when warts appear and disappear on their own. In these cases, the immune system produces antiviral protection, but does not kill the virus itself. Once your immune system weakens, warts may appear again. Therefore, for prevention, it is necessary to undergo an examination and maintain a normal immune system. One of the treatment methods is to get rid of the virus that causes the heel wart, which is popularly called the funny name “chicken butt”. Why this is so - most likely, due to external similarity...

If warts on the foot begin to appear in large numbers or begin to cause discomfort or bleed, then you should take care of their removal.

Return to contents

Features of wound treatment and care

Immediately after removing the spine with nitrogen, a white hard crust appears at the site of exposure to cold, under which serous fluid accumulates in the bladder. After a few hours, the membrane turns red and swelling appears. After 7-10 days, the crust disappears, during which time healthy young skin has already been restored underneath it. Do not damage or tear off the scab; the tissue underneath is susceptible to infection and injury. If the site is damaged by nitrogen, there is a high likelihood of scar formation. To prevent this from happening, it is recommended to protect the crust, which acts as a bactericidal dressing.

Care consists of caring for the treated area and treating it with a concentrated solution of potassium permanganate several times a day. The potassium permanganate solution should be applied with a cotton swab exclusively to the crust so as not to burn healthy skin. After treatment, the scab will turn black.

During the rehabilitation period, the patient must monitor body hygiene and use individual hygiene items. If the crust peels off, it is recommended to show the wound to your doctor to prevent infection and the development of an inflammatory process. Complete healing occurs on average after 3 weeks.

Postoperative period

The recovery period after removal of the spine with nitrogen lasts an average of 10–14 days. At this time, you need to carefully follow medical prescriptions and take care of the damaged area of skin in order to prevent complications.

It is forbidden to pick off the crust that has formed at the site of the wart, since the wound resulting from these actions can become an “entry gate” for a bacterial infection. Skin exposed to liquid nitrogen must be treated with a 2% solution of salicylic alcohol twice a day for 7 days.

Contraindications to the method

Cryotherapy, like any type of treatment, has a number of contraindications for use. Despite the good tolerance of the procedure, treatment with liquid nitrogen is not recommended:

for hypertension;
for epilepsy;
during pregnancy and breastfeeding;
for allergic dermatoses, skin rashes near warts;
during the period of exacerbation of chronic and infectious diseases;
with increased sensitivity to nitrogen;
in the presence of open and unhealed wounds in the vicinity of the treatment site;
at elevated body temperature.

The advantages of the method over other mechanical methods of removing spines are its low cost compared to a laser, radio knife, high efficiency, good tolerability, and no additional preparation for the procedure.
The method allows you to quickly achieve the desired result and cauterize multiple papillomas at the same time. Even a child over 5 years old can be treated with cryodestruction. The article has been verified by the editors

Results of cryodestruction, its advantages and disadvantages

Like any surgical intervention, cryodestruction has positive and negative sides. The advantages of the procedure are:

Affordable cost compared to laser, radio wave removal;
Lack of preparatory procedures;
Short-term manipulation;
Preventing the spread of the virus to the epithelium adjacent to the growth;
Absence of scars with a professionally performed procedure and proper postoperative care.

Disadvantages of cryodestruction of spines:

Unpleasant sensations during the procedure;
The effectiveness of treatment depends on the qualifications of the doctor, his ability to assess the depth and strength of the required impact;
A repeat procedure may be required.