MercyA Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 (edited) I teach K-2 Sunday School. A little girl just moved up to my class from the preschool class this week. She is a sweetheart and I'm thrilled to have her. However, I noticed that she has a fairly large wart on the thumb of one of her hands. This makes me a bit nervous, as the kids do share some toys, do crafts together, etc. I've read that the virus is quite hardy on surfaces. This week I disinfected everything I thought she may have touched and brought our classroom mascot (a stuffed animal) home to wash. I would rather not have to do that every week. Would I be out of line to ask her mom to cover the wart with a band-aid? Should I cover it myself if she comes with it uncovered? I don't want to be unkind or overstep. Her parents have been regular attenders for the past two years or so. I know her mom only very casually--I've only spoken with her two or three times, but I'd say we have decent rapport. What says the Hive? Edited August 6, 2019 by MercyA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jen3kids Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 I would not say a thing and I would not spend a minute doing any extra disinfecting or washing of toys. My yds had warts on his hands for a long time and we never covered them - the thought never crossed my mind. They eventually went away on their own. My ods has had warts on his right knee cap for years that he has had burned off multiple times, but they keep coming back. We have never covered them, unless he was feeling self-conscious or during wrestling season when they would tear and bleed. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted August 5, 2019 Author Share Posted August 5, 2019 @Arctic Mama, it's my understanding that warts are contagious and I know they can be very difficult to get rid of once you have them. However, it's very reassuring to know that no one in your household caught warts from your husband. When I was growing up, some members of my family and I passed around plantar warts on our feet and they were an incredible pain for me to get rid of as an adult. It involved many doctors' visits and the only thing that finally worked was yeast injections. Admittedly I am now wart-shy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jen3kids Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 1 minute ago, MercyA said: @Arctic Mama, it's my understanding that warts are contagious and I know they can be very difficult to get rid of once you have them. However, it's very reassuring to know that no one in your household caught warts from your husband. When I was growing up, some members of my family and I passed around plantar warts on our feet and they were an incredible pain for me to get rid of as an adult. It involved many doctors' visits and the only thing that finally worked was yeast injections. Admittedly I am now wart-shy! Plantar warts are very different than the warts this child has on her hands. It's the warm and moist environment, I believe, that makes them so contagious. And yes, plantar warts can be very difficult to get rid of, but apple cider vinegar did the trick for my dd ! 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selkie Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 Hand warts definitely are contagious, though. My dd caught them from a preschool classmate and I then I got them, too. It was a long and pretty painful experience getting rid of them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmasc Posted August 5, 2019 Share Posted August 5, 2019 I’m a bit crazy with the whole germ thing, and I’ve had plantar warts as a teenager that were painful to remove, but I would not be concerned about this. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted August 5, 2019 Author Share Posted August 5, 2019 (edited) nm Edited August 6, 2019 by MercyA 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 Grew up with a great friend who had one on his hand. Never got one from him. DH had one until he was in his 20s. Never spread to his family. Personally, I would spray the toys with disinfectant once a week not because of the wart but because of they are toys of multiple kids not related. It would be just a habit if mine. A quick spray and I would shut the door to my classroom. Don’t ask her to wear a band aid. 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aura Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 I've heard the thing about HPV and warts, but it's a little confusing to me cause apparently there are different kinds of warts and the virus itself is actually pretty common...just lots of things up I haven't researched much...but my question would be this: if the virus behind the wart is contagious (and I understand that it is), how is it spread? Is it through contact with the wart itself? Or do bodily fluids (like slobber and snotty noses) carry the virus? Cause if it's the first, asking for simple Band-aid cover might be worth it. But if it's the last, then at that point, there's really no reason (IMO) to bring it up. Just clean like you regularly would to avoid all the germs passed around by little kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted August 6, 2019 Author Share Posted August 6, 2019 (edited) 10 minutes ago, Aura said: I've heard the thing about HPV and warts, but it's a little confusing to me cause apparently there are different kinds of warts and the virus itself is actually pretty common...just lots of things up I haven't researched much...but my question would be this: if the virus behind the wart is contagious (and I understand that it is), how is it spread? Is it through contact with the wart itself? Or do bodily fluids (like slobber and snotty noses) carry the virus? Cause if it's the first, asking for simple Band-aid cover might be worth it. But if it's the last, then at that point, there's really no reason (IMO) to bring it up. Just clean like you regularly would to avoid all the germs passed around by little kids. I did a little bit of research on the common wart virus, the kind that is usually found on hands. It definitely can be passed from skin-to-skin contact, especially if any of the children have breaks in their skin causes by little scratches or hangnails. Most sites also said it can be passed on shared objects, but I have no idea how often that happens. I also don't know if it would be more likely to pass on a damp object (for example, a shared towel) than a dry object, like a toy. It seems likely that it would be. It's not passed by saliva or mucus. The virus is shed from the wart itself. I know that plantar warts (on the feet) should be covered with band-aids until gone to prevent their spread. My dermatologist was super firm on that point. I imagined it would be the same for warts on hands--hence my question! Edited August 6, 2019 by MercyA 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 (edited) I would not bring this up to the parent or the child. Maybe it isn't even a wart. You can't over-police healthcare in a non-hospital setting. Otherwise no one could go to church. Everyone with a cough, sniffle or sneeze would have to wear a mask during cold/allergy season because it may not be allergies.....it might be a horrible contagious illness coming on. No child who touches their eyes/mouth would be allowed to touch toys because they may have hand-foot-mouth. No one with irritated eyes would be allowed inside, because it might be pink eye coming on. A headache....might be the beginning of encephalitis. Etc Warts are contagious, but not so contagious that I would worry about embarrassing her or her parents. Or worse, making them feel unwelcome or unclean. My daughter had horrible plantar warts for years, and none of us have them. We did nothing to prevent the spread of it, it just seems like some people get it and some do not. I would not assume just because a child has a wart on their hand that they were any more contagious than a kid with a drippy nose. If you want to wash things down after she leaves...go for it. But please do not say anything to her or her family. If you are adamant about speaking to the family, talk to your board of elders/pastor or other head of the church first to see how they want it handled. There are risks to being out in public. For adults and children. Warts is so common, that I don't think you could avoid exposure if you tried. edited to correct hpv/hsv typo Edited August 6, 2019 by Tap 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 (edited) I wouldn't say anything. I think it's just one of those things. Probably many people -- including kids in school -- have warts. Honestly, I don't think they're "very" contagious. I had warts as a kid. So did one of my dd's. I had them for years. I had many close friends growing up and none of them ever got them. Neither did my siblings. Eventually, my hand warts went away. With my dd, they eventually went away too. She had a few big ones that took a couple years to get rid of. They eventually went away. None of her best friends or her siblings got warts. When I lived in the Middle East, I got warts on the bottom of my feet. I took a lot of showers in random places, barefoot. That was over 30 years ago now! Wow. I've never been able to completely get rid of them, but that's just life. They're really not a problem, at least for me. They're just there. I think of warts like allergies. You just have them, or you don't. ETA: My dd got her hand warts many, many years after I ever had them! She didn't catch them from me. Mine were long gone by then. Edited August 6, 2019 by J-rap 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted August 6, 2019 Author Share Posted August 6, 2019 (edited) A table found here shows no overlap between the strains of HPV that occur on hands and the strains that cause cancer. Edited August 6, 2019 by MercyA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted August 6, 2019 Author Share Posted August 6, 2019 (edited) nm Edited August 6, 2019 by MercyA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted August 6, 2019 Author Share Posted August 6, 2019 2 minutes ago, Æthelthryth the Texan said: I'll be honest Mercy. I'd back away from Google at this point. It's not going to do you any favors. It's just going to give you something else to fixate on. Wise woman. ❤️You know I have OCD. Going to follow your advice. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted August 6, 2019 Share Posted August 6, 2019 (edited) 19 minutes ago, MercyA said: I think this is actually a type of herpes rather than a type HPV. Both are viruses, though. I really appreciate your thoughtful, reassuring, and blunt post! Sorry, mistype. HSV....not HPV. Edited August 6, 2019 by Tap 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted August 6, 2019 Author Share Posted August 6, 2019 Okay, thanks so much, all! I'm not planning on saying anything to either mom or daughter. I may do some disinfecting but I'll try not to make myself crazy over it. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 On 8/5/2019 at 10:18 PM, MercyA said: Okay, thanks so much, all! I'm not planning on saying anything to either mom or daughter. I may do some disinfecting but I'll try not to make myself crazy over it. The toys and surfaces should really be getting cleaned and disinfected on a regular basis anyway. Kids are gross. Is there a youth group that might help the Sunday school teachers with this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MercyA Posted August 8, 2019 Author Share Posted August 8, 2019 20 hours ago, katilac said: The toys and surfaces should really be getting cleaned and disinfected on a regular basis anyway. Kids are gross. Is there a youth group that might help the Sunday school teachers with this? I agree, but we are a small country church and as far as I know we don't have any protocols in place for this. There is a janitor who cleans my room at least once a month, but I think that is probably just vacuuming, emptying the trash, and wiping off the table. I do know the woman in charge of the nursery took it upon herself to institute safe and regular disinfecting of the baby toys there. I have individual little caddies set out on our activity table, each containing crayons, a pair of scissors, a glue stick, etc. This week I'll let each child choose their favorite color of caddy and put their name on them, so that should help a bit with the spread of any germs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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