The findings of this study suggest that a combination of 5-Fluorouracil and salicylic acid is an effective and beneficial therapy for common and plantar warts – “Efficacy and benefit of a 5-FU/salicylic acid preparation in the therapy of common and plantar warts–systematic literature review and meta-analysis” (J Dtsch Dermatol Ges. 2004 Mar;2(3):187-93).

BACKGROUND: (1) Salicylic acid (SA) and 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) are effective drugs in wart therapy. (2) In Germany, increasing data on the benefit and the economic efficiency of drugs at Level I of evidence-based medicine are needed.

METHODS: Evaluation of the effectiveness and benefits of a drug combination containing 0.5 % 5-FU and 10% SA in the therapy of (a) common and (b) plantar warts in form of a two-step procedure–(1) Systematic literature analysis, (2) Meta-analysis of the randomised-controlled studies (RCTs).

RESULTS: (1) The efficacy of 5-FU/SA therapy was tested in a total of 625 patients (n=8 RCTs) with common warts and 101 patients (n=4 RCTs) with plantar warts. The therapeutic effect across all studies in common warts was 63.4% response (complete healing) for 5-FU/SA vs. 23.1% for the 5-FU-free controls, respectively. In plantar warts, the response was 63.0% vs. 11.0%. (2) A meta-analysis of n=7 RCTs on common warts (n=325 patients) showed a mean risk difference of 0.42 (CI 0.34-0.50, p < 0.05), thus a significant superiority of 5-FU/SA over SA. A comparable result was also found for plantar warts.

CONCLUSION: The combination of 5-FU and SA is an effective and beneficial therapy for common and plantar warts. PMID: 16281635

This medical review found that twice-daily application of topical fluorouracil and salicylic acid is a safe and effective treatment for plantar warts – “Treatment of verruca plantaris with a combination of topical fluorouracil and salicylic acid” (J Am Podiatr Med Assoc. 2005 Jul-Aug;95(4):366-9).

Abstract

“A medical record review was conducted to determine the clinical outcome and average time to resolution of verruca plantaris in 20 patients treated with twice-daily applications of either 0.5% or 5.0% topical fluorouracil combined with topical 17% and 40% salicylic acid. Seven patients used 0.5% fluorouracil, and 13 used 5.0% fluorouracil. All of the lesions were sharply debrided at regular 1- or 2-week intervals. All 20 patients achieved full clinical resolution in a mean +/- SD of 82.5 +/- 56.6 days. Three patients (15%) had recurrent lesions, which subsequently resolved with repeated treatment. Two patients (10%) developed local dermatitis, which resolved with temporary discontinuation of the medication and the addition of a topical corticosteroid. It was observed that the twice-daily application of topical fluorouracil and salicylic acid is a safe and effective treatment for verruca plantaris.” PMID: 16037552
We can compound 5-Fluorouracil and salicylic acid into one topical solution.

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