Warts are small, rough, viral benign growths on the skin. They are extremely common and are usually spread by direct skin-to-skin contact or indirectly through shared contact with contaminated surfaces. Warts do not usually cause any other symptoms in people with normally functioning immune systems and they usually resolve without treatment, although this can take months or years. For most cases, treatment is required to remove them.

In most cases cryotherapy or acids are the first line treatment for warts but diathermy targets the ‘mother warts’. It is effective in 65-85% of cases and is the preferred treatment for persistent warts.