Molluscum
Treatment
This viral infection –
molluscum contagiosum – is as the name suggests
very contagious and mostly affects infants and
young children under the age of 10 years. Although
this condition is found all over the world, molluscum
is more likely to occur in those places with warm,
humid climates.
Molluscum contagiosum almost
needs to be treated as two different subject matters
– firstly as a childhood infection and secondly
as a sexually transmitted disease in adults. However,
in this article we are going to concentrate on
molluscum as a childhood condition.
Molluscum contagiosum begins
as tiny painless bumps that grow over several
weeks to become small, raised, round, flesh colored
bumps on the skin. They usually have a small distinguishing
crater in the centre of each bump. These bumps
may become swollen and turn red as the body’s
natural immune system starts to fight the virus
and they then become crusty or scabby. In children,
the infection usually appears on the face, neck,
armpits, hands or arms.
When this infection is
contracted by a healthy child, then the period
of healing for each mollusk is usually 6 to 8
weeks. But the infection can easily spread to
surrounding skin if scratched or injured and then
the healing has to start all over again. The infection
is spread by direct skin to skin contact as well
as by contact with contaminated objects that have
the virus on them. Molluscum can look quite unsightly
especially if it appears on the face or on visible
parts of the body and it is wise to find a molluscum
treatment as soon as possible.
Many children who have
eczema
also develop molluscum too.
Molluscum treatment
options
Children with molluscum
need to be looked after carefully with strict
attention paid to hygiene. So part of the molluscum
treatment is home care:
Give your child a shower
instead of a bath as the molluscum virus can live
and spread in the bath water to other parts of
the body.
Wash and dry all
bath toys every day after use as these can also
spread the virus.
Be careful of
how your dry your child after the shower. The
virus can also be spread on the towel –
so dry the affected areas last and always use
a clean towel each time.
Do not let your
child share baths with other children or go into
swimming pools until the spots and the molluscum
have all gone away.
For obvious reasons,
do not share your child’s towels, face cloths
or clothing with other children.
When you are handling
your child’s molluscum, be careful to wash
your hands straight afterwards.
Then side by side with
your home care, you can use a molluscum treatment
which you feel will best suit both you and your
child. There are several different molluscum treatments
available, mane are very similar to skin
tag removal and wart
removal treatments:
Tape stripping is where
the spots are covered with duct tape or elastoplast
and left on for 2 days before being pulled off.
This irritates the spots and may need to be done
several times to try to remove the central core
of the spot. The adhesive part of the Elastoplast
needs to touch the molluscum. Betadine may be
applied to the molluscum first. It may even be
necessary to use an irritating solution first
to make this treatment more successful. But be
guided by your doctor as you could end up harming
the surrounding skin.
Cryotherapy is
where your doctor or dermatologist applies liquid
nitrogen to the spots every 2-3 weeks. There can
be a risk of mild scarring.
Laser treatment
is another method of removal which can be carried
out by a health
specialist.
There are also
over the counter and prescription creams which
can be used.
A natural healing
product is an option if you prefer a gentle and
natural treatment to eliminate the molluscum with
no skin irritation, no pain and no scarring. Such
a moluscum treatment can be ordered on line and
is made from pure essential oils.
Molluscum spots can be
present for just a few weeks or as long as several
months or even over a year. And all the time the
molluscum spots are there, your child is very
contagious and can spread the virus. This molluscum
contagiosum virus (MCV) only lives in humans and
can be spread from person to person or to different
areas in the same person. So you can see how important
it is to undergo molluscum treatment for everyone’s
sake.
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