How Do You Treat Molluscum (Molluscum Contagiosum)?
• Understand that all treatments should be provided by a physician. It is never a good idea to try to remove a molluscum bump yourself. Doing so may cause the virus to spread, cause unnecessary pain, create a serious bacterial infection, and cause scarring that may not otherwise have occurred. There are also treatments advertised on the Internet to treat molluscum that do more harm than good. Know the treatments available. These include: • Cryotherapy (freezing the bump). This is the same method often used to remove warts from the skin. This method may leave scars. • Curettage. This is where the fluid from the bump is removed. This method can leave scars, also. • Lasers. Though effective, this treatment can sometimes be painful. • Creams. There are creams containing certain chemicals (i.e., salicylic acid, podophyllin, tretinoin, and cantharidin) that may be used to remove the bumps effectively. The creams are applied directly to each bump. • These creams do not always remove the bumps
