Dermatology-Online

Age warts

Definition - What are Age Warts?

Age warts are benign skin changes that, as the name suggests, occur in old age. They are not actual warts and are not caused by viruses. In medical terminology, they are also known as seborrheic keratosis.

Also read: Warts

Age warts are brownish to black, soft, smooth to fissured skin nodules that occur mainly on the upper body, forearms and face. They do not degenerate, but can e.g. bleed from friction. Age warts can appear from the age of 30 and their number usually increases with age.

Read more on the subject at: Skin changes in old age

treatment

How can you remove age warts?

Actually, age warts do not require treatment. They have no risk of degeneration and usually do not cause any further complaints. However, many of those affected find them cosmetically uncomfortable.

An indication to remove an age wart is if the dermatologist cannot determine with certainty whether it is really an age wart or not a precursor of skin cancer.

Also read: Skin cancer screening

Various options are available for removal. Age warts can either be removed with a laser or they can be frozen (Cryotherapy) or surgically removed. Which method is used depends on the size and location of the age wart.

Lasers

With the laser, the age warts are removed down to the healthy skin with the help of a laser. Local anesthesia is used for this treatment method so that laser removal is painless. After removal, a small crust remains on the skin, but after a few days it falls off like a normal wound crust.

Read more on the subject at: Laser therapy

Icing over

With freezing, also called cryotherapy, the age wart is treated with liquid nitrogen. Due to the intense cold, ice crystals form inside the cells and the cells then die. The wart then falls off after a few days.

Read more on the subject at: Cryotherapy

Can you remove age warts yourself?

No. Age warts cannot be removed by yourself with home remedies or similar substances offered for real warts. If an age wart is to be removed because it is perceived as cosmetically annoying, it must be removed by a dermatologist.

What does the distance cost?

Since the procedure is not medically necessary, the removal of old age warts is an individual health service (IGEL) and is not covered by the statutory health insurance. Usually several age warts are removed in one session. The removal of up to 10 pieces costs about 60-100 €. The costs vary depending on the doctor and treatment method.

Tea tree oil as a home remedy for age warts

Many people afflicted with old age warts swear by tea tree oil as a home remedy for old age warts. Daily dabbing over several weeks is supposed to dry out the age warts so that they fall off, similar to after freezing. However, when using tea tree oil, care should be taken that it can cause allergic reactions.

Other home remedies for old age warts can be Swedish herbs or celandine. However, the effect of all these agents has not been scientifically proven and should therefore be used with caution. The same applies to homeopathic remedies that promise an effect against age warts.

Where do age warts occur particularly?

Age warts occur mainly on the upper body (chest and back), face, and the front of the arms and legs. They do not appear on the palms or soles of the feet. Changes in these areas are usually real warts such as Plantar warts.

Concomitant symptoms

Usually, age warts do not cause any further symptoms. Occasionally they can be itchy. Especially if they are in mechanically stressed areas and clothing or the like rubs against them, the age warts can bleed.

However, when old age warts appear for the first time, it is important to have the old age wart examined by a dermatologist. This can better assess whether it is really just an old age wart or a possibly malignant change.

itching

Itching is the only symptom that can occasionally appear with age warts. Here short-term relief can be provided by cooling or applying cooling creams and gels.

Causes of Age Warts

So far, the causes of age warts have not been clarified. They are not caused by viruses like real warts and are therefore not contagious. A genetic cause is suspected.

diagnosis

Age warts are a visual diagnosis. The dermatologist recognizes from features such as shape, color and surface texture that it is an age wart. If there is any uncertainty in the diagnosis, it should be removed in any case in order to rule out that it is not a malignant change.

Duration

Age warts can appear from the age of 30. It is typical, however, to occur from around the age of 50. Their number usually increases with age. If an aging wart is not removed by a doctor, it will stay on the skin for a lifetime.

Why can age warts appear at a young age?

Age warts typically only appear from around the age of 50. However, they can occur as early as the age of 30. Since the reason for the development of age warts has not yet been clarified, it cannot be explained why age warts also appear at a young age. A genetic cause is suspected.