Verrucuos keratosis refers to a skin disease affecting the epidermis. Verrucous means growths resembling warts, while keratinocytes mean the growths forming on your outermost layer of the skin. The illness causes overgrowths on the skin that look like warts. The condition is also referred to as seborrheic keratosis. The only slight difference between the two is that, immediately viral warts begin to develop in seborrheic keratosis, the condition is now referred to as verrucous kerastosis. The two diseases may be similar but the causal wart develops mostly in old age. The wart is not cancerous and does not migrate to other parts of the body.
Causes of the disease
Factors that lead to the disease are not clear but there are several situations that attribute to the condition. Some of these factors include the following:
- Ultra violet radiations, which are the leading contributing factor to the disorder
- Constant stress leads to overgrowths on the epidermis. Many people consider skin disorders to be a symptom of depression and stress.
- Excessive sun exposure on the arms, back, neck and face
- Gastro intestinal disorders could also lead to benign growths but require further investigation. Gene mutation can also lead to the disease. The mutated genes cause growth on the skin.
Symptoms
In many cases, the disease does not have any symptoms. Even a person with the illness may not present any symptoms at all. Verrucous keratosis becomes more severe later, especially when people get to the age of forty to forty five years. However, it should be noted that small hard overgrowths are found on the skin of most elderly people. As a result, not all small overgrowths may be termed as verrucous keratosis.
While there are no clear symptoms to recognize the condition, the following observations are associated with the illness. These include the overgrowth coming out easily and itching on the region around the overgrowth.
Diagnosis
Clinical findings of a person with this condition are outgrowths on the trunk and face though they could also be present on other parts of the body. One could have a few lesions but in some instances, a patient has numerous lesions. The lesions will normally differ in color. They range from black to brown though those that are thinner appear paler than others. Traumatized lesions look inflamed.
Verrucous keratosis – Treatment
Majority of patients suffering from this illness do not require any specialized kind of treatment. The outgrowths will normally clear with time. However, those who need treatment are given liquid nitrogen, which is very effective in treating this skin condition. In case the outgrowths are very big, it is then advisable they get removed using cautery or curettage.
If the rate at which the outgrowths increase is very high, then it is vital that more investigation be carried out. A sample is taken for histology and other tests. According to the findings, a surgery could be the next course of action. If there is too much itching and the number of outgrowths continue to raise, it is dangerous because the growths should slowly decrease on their own or after medication. In situations where one has to take a surgery, they should completely cooperate with the doctor and not get bothered about the scars that will remain after the operation. Scars and marks will usually clear with time.
Preventive measures
It is recommended that precautions to prevent the disease are taken despite the fact that the exact causes of the disease are not known. The following precautions could be taken:
- Elderly people should use sunscreen lotion
- People should learn to manage stress since it is a major cause of several health problems. When one is happy, it helps prevent half of the diseases.
- Avoid scratching the outgrowths as it makes them grow bigger
- Adopt a healthy lifestyle especially eating healthy food. This could help prevent most of the gastric problems. The foods people eat determine how their skin and body organs will function.
As people grow older, outgrowths may develop on the skin. These growths are not cancerous hence they should not cause alarm. If one notices that the growths are continuously increasing, a minor surgery could help clear them. The growths are easily removable but people are discouraged from scratching them as it could make the situation worse.
The skin is prone to many conditions because it is the largest body organ. It should be noted that the daily schedule is as important as what people eat.
Verrucous kerastosis is not more serious than other skin conditions; the only difference is the cause of the lesion. When the doctor gets to determine the types of kerastosis you are suffering from, proper treatment can be administered accordingly. If the disease becomes persistence, then one is advised to visit a qualified healthcare provider for proper assessment.
