Very embarrassing- warts on hands

[Pink75928]

Hi all. This is very sensitive to me. I am on MTX and sulfasalazine. Over the weekend I have had an outbreak of warts on my hands (I think warts anyway). I have never had warts in my life before. I have about 8 on one hand and 5 on the other. Is this cause for concern?

[Biofreak]

Hi Pink. It's hard to advise without seeing them and wouldn't probably know as I'm not a doctor so I would either consult your Gp or a pharmacist. I have a couple of psoriasis patches on my right hand which,, according to my GP, developed a wart on top. Psoriatic Arthritis can cause this but I would consult your Gp or rheumatologist to be sure and get a proper diagnosis.

[Gottarelax]

Warts are caused by viruses and may be an indication that you have reduced immunity due to your treatment. I'd speak to your Rheumy just in case that reduced immunity is something that should be investigated.

[Neonkittie17 in reply to Gottarelax]

I had a wart always on my finger all the time when I didn’t have RA under control that vanished as soon as my RA meds were successful.

[Amnesiac3637]

If you’re sure they’re warts there’s not much point in worrying about them - they come, stay for a while and then mostly disappear without trace quite suddenly . They can come to both immunocompromised people and those that have no problems at all as they are caused by the HPV virus and for some reason we can all be susceptible.

If you are unlucky and they become infected, which is very rare but can happen if they’re fiddled about with, then you need to see somebody medical. Obviously if you’re worried then go and have them investigated but you won’t come to any harm from them. I was a Practice Sister and we used to see many people with them - they can be iced off or ointmented but they tend to go when they’re ready.

[Pink75928 in reply to Amnesiac3637]

thank you. That’s so reassuring xxx

[Hidden]

I have lots of strange skin growths on my torso front and back, after 20 years they are spreading down my legs. I hate and detest them especially when they are dark enough or thick enough to be apparent through clothes. I paid to have a few removed 10 years ago but they have grown back through the scar tissue. They are not warts but I have no other diagnosis, I suspect AI and RA linked and I also have LS. Currently I’m using steroid cream on the worst but obviously can’t apply it to the huge areas affected. It does reduce the itching and soreness and seems to reduce their development too. My GP is not interested, I’m not under any consultant, the means to go private has gone and I HATE HATE HATE my skin as a result and feel like an alien is living on me! Sorry for the hysterical rant but your post of embarrassment resonated with how I feel. Hope your warts fade quickly.

[BonnieG123]

hi, Pink! I’ve had warts as a kid but while I was on MTX I didn’t experience any thing like skin problems but after two years I couldn’t handle the awful debilitating feeling of being sick. Too sick to get out of bed. That’s when I gave up on MTX and seem to have experienced a bit of remission. I do however get this little warty things on my face that I feel more than see now two years after stopping MTX. When I got them on my hands as a kid, they corterized them. They were in my cuticle area and the cuticle never grew back correctly but the warts were gone. Good luck with everything!