Dermatology · Warts
Stubborn warts, safely cleared
Warts are common and generally harmless — but they can be painful, contagious and hard to shift on your own. Home treatments often leave stubborn warts to persist, spread or return. Professional removal destroys the wart tissue precisely, protects the healthy skin around it and lowers the chance of it coming back.
What they are
A skin virus, not a blemish
Warts are benign skin growths caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). The virus enters through small cuts or grazes and makes skin cells grow faster than normal, forming the wart on the top layer of the skin.
They're contagious — spreading through direct contact with a wart, or indirectly via towels, floors, gym mats and shared items. They can also spread across your own skin if you pick at them or shave over them. After exposure, a wart can take 2–6 months to appear, which is why the source is often a mystery.
Warts on the face or genitals, or any that are large, painful or persistent, need professional care.
Types of warts
Different warts, different treatment
The right approach depends on the type of wart, where it is and how many there are — so getting the diagnosis right matters.
Common warts
Rough, raised bumps — usually on the hands, fingers and around nails — sometimes with tiny black dots (small blood vessels) at the centre.
Plantar warts
On the soles of the feet. Pressure from walking pushes them inward, making them painful. Clusters (mosaic warts) can be harder to treat.
Flat warts
Small, smooth and often in large numbers — commonly on the face, legs and arms, particularly in children and young adults.
Filiform warts
Thin, finger-like projections that tend to appear around the eyes, lips or nose and need careful treatment.
Genital warts
Affect the genital or anal area and always need medical evaluation. Never attempt home treatment here.
Other & unusual warts
Periungual (around nails), facial and hand warts. Anything that changes rapidly, bleeds or looks unusual needs assessment.
When to get it checked. See a doctor if a wart becomes painful, bleeds, changes quickly or won't improve after a few months — and always for facial or genital warts, which need professional care.
Why they're hard to shift
Why warts spread and return
HPV survives on skin and surfaces, which is what makes warts so persistent — and why the right treatment matters.
Picking spreads them
Picking at a wart releases viral particles, and shaving over one carries the virus to nearby skin — seeding new warts.
Easily shared
Sharing towels, razors or pumice stones, and using gyms, pools and changing rooms, all raise the risk of catching or passing them on.
Immunity plays a part
Children and people with a weakened immune system develop warts more easily. A healthy immune system helps — but doesn't always clear them quickly.
Some mimic other conditions
A few skin growths resemble warts but aren't — proper diagnosis rules out skin cancer and other conditions before treatment.
Treatment options
Precise removal, minimal downtime
At Circle Care we lead with advanced cryotherapy — targeting the wart while sparing the healthy skin around it — chosen and tailored to your skin type, the wart's location and your history.
Advanced cryotherapy
Our first-line treatment: precise cryo technology destroys wart tissue and seals the tiny blood vessels that feed it, with only mild discomfort and minimal downtime.
For plantar & stubborn warts
Especially effective for plantar, flat and filiform warts, and warts that haven't responded to other treatments — with faster results than most topicals.
Topical treatments
Medically supervised topical options where they suit the wart type and location — used alone or alongside in-clinic treatment.
Aftercare & recurrence care
Guidance to protect healthy skin, reduce spread and support your immune system — lowering the chance the wart returns.
What to expect
Smooth skin, step by step
Wart removal is quick and precise, with clear aftercare to help healing and keep recurrence low.
Consultation
We confirm the type of wart, rule out look-alikes, and choose the most effective treatment for its location and your skin.
Treatment
Precise cryotherapy (or the agreed option) targets the wart tissue while protecting the healthy skin around it.
Healing
Mild discomfort and minimal downtime — with clear aftercare to protect the area and limit spread as it heals.
Review
Stubborn warts can need more than one session; we review and re-treat as needed, and advise on preventing recurrence.
Your specialist
Prof. Dr. Milos Pavlovic
Our Professor of Dermatology removes stubborn and recurrent warts with advanced, tissue-sparing cryotherapy — tailoring each treatment to your skin type, the wart's location and your medical history to clear it effectively and keep recurrence low.
Good to know
Warts, answered
Smooth, healthy skin
Book a wart removal consultation
A stubborn or painful wart you'd like gone? Book online or message us and we'll clear it safely and help keep it from coming back.
