Is It Safe to Freeze Off Warts on a Child?
If a wart appears on your child, chances are you will want to treat it because it takes so long for a wart to go away on its own. Plus, the wart is contagious so you will want to do what you can to prevent the spread—to other parts of your child’s body and to other people.
Luckily, there are a few different wart treatments that are safe for kids. One of the fastest ways to remove a wart is through cryotherapy or cryosurgery—freezing the wart. Here’s what you should know.
What Is Involved with Freezing a Wart?
Freezing a wart used to be something that could only take place in a doctor’s office however, now the stress of a doctor’s office visit can be eliminated because at home treatments are now available over the counter.
Having a Doctor Freeze the Wart with Liquid Nitrogen
Medical doctors use liquid nitrogen to freeze off a wart. If the wart is thick, some of the extra skin on it may need to be cut off first with a special sharp instrument so the freezing treatment will work.
The doctor will either use a spray or swab to apply the liquid nitrogen to the wart. The treatment is very cold and will sting, and then skin may feel like it’s burning as the frozen skin tissue thaws. The doctor may be able to remove the wart in one treatment, or your child may need more than one treatment spaced out over several weeks. Ask your doctor ahead of time, so you can prepare your child.
The area treated may be red and swollen afterward, or a blister may form after treatment. The doctor will tell you how to care for it as the skin heals. Ask your doctor about any risks or after-effects and what their particular process is for freezing a child’s wart.
Using an At-Home “Freeze-Off” Wart Removal Treatment
Compound W® now offers a cryotherapy-based home wart removal product designed specifically for kids. Compound W® Freeze Off® for Kids incorporates our unique Accu-Freeze™ technology and SKIN SHIELD™ protective discs that, together, allows the therapy to target the wart while helping protect the healthy skin around the wart. This is so important with kids’ delicate skin.
An ultra-precision applicator (included in the kit) allows you to adjust the contact size and deliver the Freeze-Off wart treatment right where you need it. Just follow the directions included in the box for a safe and easy application. Note, the freezing effect will still cause some discomfort while freezing and thawing.
The freezing technology in our Freeze Off® for Kids reaches deeper into the wart than topical treatments, and is effective on common and plantar warts. This helps remove the wart in as little as one treatment—though it may take just a few more. This product is easy and safe to use for kids ages 4 and up.
Use Compound W® Freeze Off® for Kids only if you are sure the skin condition is a wart. If you are not sure, consult your doctor first.
If You Decide Not to Freeze Your Child’s Wart with Compound W
If after reading this, you think freezing the wart may not be for your child, you can try our easy-to-use Compound W® One Step Strips For Kids. These are medicated bandages in a fun, kid-friendly, waterproof design that go on over the wart in one step, just like a bandage does over a scrape or cut. You can use them on kids ages 3 and up to treat, cushion, and conceal any common wart or plantar wart on your child. The wart then may take several weeks or months to go away completely.
