Nobody wants warts, but some people seem to be more susceptible to them than others. That's probably because while there are many different types of warts, they are all caused by the same virus – the human papillomavirus. This means that warts can be contagious and if you have one, you may find several springing up near it as the virus spreads to other parts of your skin.

The virus that causes warts affects the cells in the epidermis which is the upper layers of your skin. It causes the cells to replicate faster than they should which results in their being too many skin cells in one small area. The cells grow upwards in cylinder shapes and many of these shapes can fuse together causing the mosaic type of warts that we often see on people's hands, elbows, knees and ankles.

There are four different types of warts that most people have to deal with which are listed below:

Verruca Vulgaris - otherwise referred to as a "common wart", this is the typical bumpy, wart that usually manifested itself on the hands, elbows, ankles and knees.

Plantar Wart - this wart is what you find on the bottom of your feet. It's actually the same as a common wart however it usually looks smoother and flatter mostly due to the pressure put on it from walking. While warts usually grow outward, these might sometimes grow inward due to this pressure. They can be quite painful and can also be transmitted through walking barefoot on wet flooring in public areas.

Flat Wart - due to the thinness of the skin on the face, if one gets the wart in this area are usually much flatter and smoother and, thus, called a flat wart.

Genital Wart - genital warts are, of course, in the genital area and can be passed on to the next person through sexual activity.

Now, you would think with all these different types of warts there would be different treatments but since they are all caused by the human papilloma virus treatment, or should I say treatments, as there are many you can try. Sometimes warts will just go away on their own, but if you are impatient and want to get rid of yours you might try any of the over-the-counter treatments you will find in the drugstore, freezing or the ever popular duct tape method where you "smother" your wart thus removing the affected skin layers. If your wart persists, you may have to see a specialist, and with genital warts you should really not try to self treat. Not every treatment works for everyone so you may have to try a few before you find one that works to get rid of your warts.