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Q. I wanted to share a method that I have used several times for killing warts, and am curious if you have any insight that differs from mine.
My doctor gives me a recurring prescription for the antiviral drug amantadine. I take it with me when I travel in case I get the flu. I throw the bottle away when the pills expire.
The capsules are flexible with a yellow gooey substance inside. On a whim back in 2007 I cut one open (instead of throwing away the expired prescription) and squeezed the goo onto a big wart on my neck and covered it with a bandage. I figured warts were viral and maybe an antiviral drug would work.
Over the next few days, this wart began to turn pink. After about a week I was absentmindedly running my finger across it and it just fell off. Any thoughts?
A. To our astonishment, we did find a suggestion that the antiviral influenza medicine amantadine might work topically against genital warts. The accounts were brief and published in both Japanese and German medical journals decades ago. As far as we can tell, there has been no well-conducted scientific research on this fascinating discovery. You may have stumbled on something worth further investigation.
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I wanted to share my similar experience regarding the effectiveness of antiviral prescriptions for warts. I had a stubborn wart on my finger for 2-3 years that had resisted multiple over-the-counter remedies (treated bandages, freezing sprays, liquid) and the home remedy of keeping it covered. Last summer, I had my first adult outbreak of shingles (a reactivation of the chicken pox virus, which is in the herpes family).
A doctor prescribed Valtrex, usually a treatment for genital herpes. This is taken in oral form. I also took some lysine supplements, as I'd read this amino acid suppresses the herpes virus (while arginine encourages it.) A few weeks after treatment, I realized the stubborn wart had disappeared as well!
I usually favor natural treatments and don't put a lot of faith in conventional medicine or prescription drugs, but if I ever get a wart again, I'd try the lysine first, and ask for more Valtrex if needed.
Since the current theory is that warts are Viral in nature, then the use of antivirals may be the correct treatment for them. My only concern is the arbitrary and capricious use of antivirals can lead to more serious viruses becoming resistant to the antivirals. This has already happened with serious diseases like TB. This resistance phenomenon has also occurred in bacterial infections that have developed resistance to anti-bacterial medications. We should always use these powerful antiviral and antibacterial medications prudently and only when other treatments have proven ineffective.
I had a wart on the back of one finger, around the nail of another and a plantars wart each for several years with no luck at removing them. I caught the flu for the second time (ever) at about 40 years old and within a couple weeks of the flu ending, the warts came off, never to return. I can't help but think that my immune system in fighting the flu, fought the warts, but everyone I tell (including a dermatologist) thinks it is just coincidence. Tough to repeat the experiment.