Warts are skin and mucosa growths caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) infection.This study compared the efficacy and safety of two treatment modalities addressing plantar warts– intralesional 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) solution and 5-FU solution with microneedling. A total of60 patients with plantar warts were divided into two groups and treated accordingly. Group Areceived intralesional 5-FU solution, while Group B received 5-FU solution with a microneedlingpen. The treatment was administered every 2 weeks for a maximum of 6 sessions or untilcomplete wart resolution.

The results revealed that Group B had a higher rate of complete cure (83.3%) than Group A(70%). Partial cure rates were observed in both groups, with a higher percentage in Group A(13.3%) compared to Group B (6.7%). While nonresponsive cases were more common in GroupA (16.7%) than in Group B (10%). The majority of partial or nonresponsive cases had mosaic-type infections.

In conclusion, the use of a derma pen with 5-FU solution was found to be superior tointralesional injection for treating planter warts, particularly in cases of mosaic-type infections.

Source: Mohamed Ali Zeyada A, El-Din ME, Fawzy Fahmy Mohamed S. Topical 5-fluorouraciland microneedling in the treatment of planter warts: randomized comparative trial. Al-AzharMed J. 2022;51(3):1693-702.