Dealing with Molluscum contagiosum can be difficult for parents as a stigma is often attached to this wart-like condition, which only affects children. But it is incredibly common and will eventually go away on its own, says Dr. Todd Minars of Minars Dermatology in Hollywood, Florida. Or you can try beetle juice.
Molluscum contagiosum is a common problem. It’s so common, in fact, that I have put information about it on my website so parents can read about it. They are caused by a wart-like virus but different from the one that actually causes warts. But like warts, it causes little bumps on the skin, is contagious with contact, and just like warts, has similar treatment.
The difference is that warts tend to occur in all ages, while molluscum appears exclusively in children under 10 years old. We are not sure exactly why this is the case but it seems the adult immune system is more sophisticated, so adults just don’t catch them. One exception: We sometimes see it in adults as a sexually transmitted disease, when they get genital molluscum.
Molluscum often cause a lot of confusion, fear and frustration in parents. There are several reasons for this. One is that kids who have the disease often will get sent home from school, and parents whose kids catch it get angry at other parents. I am often asked to write letters to let a child back in school. It can take months for molluscum to go away, and it’s like keeping a child home from school for having a wart.
The other reason parents get frustrated is because molluscum is sometimes hard to get rid of. People get frustrated when they have to bring their children to the dermatologist three or four times. But they just have to know it can take a while to go way.
Treatment Options
Treatment is varied. With children, you can usually only do something painful once. So we can scrape them off initially, which is somewhat traumatic but effective. People sometimes freeze them off like warts, which is also traumatic. So often we rely on a simple treatment, using a medicine called Cantherone. Cantherone is basically beetle juice, and the kids always like it when you tell them you are putting the juice of beetles on their skin. It comes from the Blister beetle, and we just put a little bit of liquid on skin, which causes a blister over the next few hours.
That blister achieves two things. First, the skin will lift up and eventually fall off, which means it’s not practical if a kid has dozens of these, you don’t want to give him a million blisters. But for just a few, the juice will irritate the molluscum, and causes the immune system to take over.
Most of the time, however, molluscum will go away on its own. As a dermatologist, I often see the cases which did not go away. Often I see that a few times a day, so it appeals to me to treat it instead of waiting. Treatment makes the warts go away faster.
A lot of time parents come in and are angry at their pediatrician, who told them not to treat their child’s molluscum. Now, instead of three molluscum, they have 40, which can take anywhere from a few months to a few years to go away. I prefer immediate treatment.
The information in the article is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your healthcare provider. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with an appropriate healthcare provider.
