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. 2022 Sep;78(Suppl 1):S75-S81.
doi: 10.1016/j.mjafi.2020.07.009. Epub 2020 Oct 9.

Falkner's needling technique for the treatment of warts: Minimum investment, maximum benefit

Sukriti Baveja  1 , Siddharth Bhatt  2 , Surbhi Vashisht  3 , Deepak Vashisht  1 , Rajneesh Joshi  4 , Vikas Pathania  5 , Ruby Venugopal  6
Affiliations

Falkner's needling technique for the treatment of warts: Minimum investment, maximum benefit

Sukriti Baveja et al. Med J Armed Forces India. 2022 Sep.

Abstract

Background: Verruca vulgaris is a viral infection with high recurrence rates and is very difficult to treat. It occurs due to the ability of the virus to evade immune recognition. This immune evasion by the human papillomavirus (HPV) can be circumvented by injecting HPV antigens subcutaneously and inducing inflammation and a systemic immune response. Falkner technique is an approved technique for the treatment of warts. In this observational study, we analyzed the recovery rate among patients undergoing this technique as part of their routine treatment. The aim of this study is to study the clinical outcome of Falkner's needling technique that is being used for the treatment of verruca vulgaris.

Methods: Under local anaesthesia, only a single wart was vertically punctured using a 26-gauge needle up till the subcutis multiple times till bleeding was observed. No treatment was done for other warts. Patients were advised not to take any anti-inflammatory medications for pain and were observed for responses after 1 week as well as 1 and 3 months.

Results: Of 41 patients included in this study, the total resolution of both the punctured and distant warts occurred in 28 patients (68.29%) and partial response in 7 patients (17.1%) by the end of 3 months. Interestingly, individual warts that were subjected to needling showed complete resolution in 35 patients (85.4%).

Conclusion: Falkner's needling method provides a high rate of complete resolution of multiple warts at both the needled and distant sites after a single treatment session of only a single lesion. This modality has a high cure rate, is easy to perform, requires minimal infrastructure support, is cost-effective, and can be undertaken at most peripheral settings with minimal training.

Keywords: Falkner's technique; Needling; Warts.

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Conflict of interest statement

All authors have none to declare.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Dermoscopy of warts showing (a) thrombosed vessels and (b) loss of dermatoglyphics.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Falkner's needling technique.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
a) Plantar warts before the procedure. b) Plantar warts have resolved completely at 3 months after the procedure.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
a) Facial warts before the procedure. b) Facial warts have resolved completely at 3 months after the procedure.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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