Health Encyclopedia

Wart remover poisoning

Definition

Wart removers are medicines used to eliminate warts, which are small, usually painless growths on the skin caused by a virus. Wart remover poisoning occurs when someone accidentally or intentionally swallows or uses more than the normal or recommended amount of this medication.

Poisonous Ingredient

Salicylates
Other acids

Where Found

Clear Away
Clear Away Plantar
Compound W
DuoFilm
DuoFilm patch
DuoPlant for Feet
Freezone
Gordofilm
Hydrisalic
Keralyt
Lactisol
Lactisol-Forte
Maximum Strength Wart-Off
Mediplast
Mosco
Occlusal
Occlusal-HP
Off-Ezy Wart Remover
Panscol
Paplex Ultra
PediaPatch
Sal-Acid
Sal-Plant
Salacid
Salactic Film
Trans-Plantar
Trans-Ver-Sal
Vergo
Verukan
Viranol
Wart Remover

Note: This list may not be all-inclusive.

Symptoms

Airways and lungs
- Breathing may stop
- Rapid breathing
Eyes, ears, nose, and throat
- Eye irritation
- Loss of vision
- Ringing in the ears
- Throat swelling
Kidneys
- Kidney failure
Nervous system
- Collapse (from swallowing substance)
- Convulsions (from swallowing substance)
- Dizziness
- Drowsiness
- Fever (from swallowing substance)
- Hallucinations
- Hyperactivity
Skin
- Rash (usually an allergic reaction)
- Mild burn (in extremely high doses)
Stomach and intestines
- Nausea
- Vomiting, possibly with blood

Home Treatment

Seek immediate medical help. Do NOT make a person throw up unless told to do so by Poison Control or a health care professional.

Before Calling Emergency

Determine the following information:

Patient's age, weight, and condition
The name of the product (ingredients and strengths, if known)
When it was swallowed
The amount swallowed

Poison Control, or a local emergency number

The National Poison Control Center (1-800-222-1222) can be called from anywhere in the United States. This national hotline number will let you talk to experts in poisoning. They will give you further instructions.

This is a free and confidential service. All local poison control centers in the United States use this national number. You should call if you have any questions about poisoning or poison prevention. It does NOT need to be an emergency. You can call for any reason, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Take the container with you to the hospital, if possible.

See: Poison control center - emergency number

What to expect at the emergency room

The health care provider will measure and monitor the patient's vital signs, including temperature, pulse, breathing rate, and blood pressure. Symptoms will be treated as appropriate. If the substance was swallowed, the patient may receive:

Activated charcoal
Blood tests
Fluids by IV
Sodium bicarbonate - a medicine (partial antidote) to help neutralize and remove the chemicals (salicylates) from the body
Tube placed down the nose and into the stomach

If the poisoning occurred through skin exposure, the patient may receive:

Washing (irrigation) of the skin, perhaps every few hours for several days
Surgical removal of burned skin (debridement)

Expectations (prognosis)

How well a patient does depends on how much poison entered the blood and how quickly treatment was received. Patients can recover if the effect of the poison can be neutralized.

Review Date:10/29/2007
Reviewed By:Eric Perez, MD, Department of Emergency Medicine, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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