Evaluation of clinical and epidemiological features of children with facial viral warts.

Abstract

Verrucae are viral lesions commonly encountered in the pediatric population. They occur relatively rarely on the face. The occurence of verrucae in the facial region leads to limitation in treatment modalities and increases patient discordance. The clinical and epidemiological data of 37 patients (26 females) seen at the Dicle University Faculty of Medicine Dermatology outpatient clinics from January 2012 to January 2013 were reported. The mean age of the patients was 10.43±4.51 (range 4-18). The mean duration of lesions was 16.59±14.90 months. Number of lesions ranged from 1 to 50 (mean: 15.92). The most common localization on the facial area was the cheek in 23/37. Extrafacial involvement was present in 5/37 patients. The most common type of verruca in the facial region was verruca plana (50%). Before admission to our clinic, 56.8% had not received any form of treatment. Treatment modalities included reassurance - 16% -, cryotherapy -10.8% -, topical treatment with tretinoin cream, salicylic acid + 5-FU solution - 5.4% - and cauterization -1%-. Twelve of the 21 patients who had not previously received therapy had periorbital lesions. Positive correlation was present between age and duration of lesions (p < 0.01, r = 0.42).