• Use light pressure, do not press or rub the area with the tip – silver nitrate is brittle and may break if too much pressure is applied. Silver nitrate must not be used on genital warts or near eyes..

Much of the following guide applies to use with body fluid but is written for use with water. One drop of water is sufficient to treat two square inches of tissue. Place a single drop of water, or more if required, on a clean non-absorbent surface such as an upturned drinking glass or stainless steel container. Gently stir the tip of a pencil/applicator in the drop of water for about 20 to 30 seconds. Silver nitrate from the tip is quickly dissolved in the water. Although the appearance of the water does not change, it is now rich in silver nitrate and any absorbent material (clothing, furniture etc.) that comes into contact with this water will turn black in time depending on exposure to light. There is no need to move quickly or finish within a certain time. Silver nitrate will continue to be dissolved as long as the unused tip remains in contact with water or body fluid. Touch the area to be treated with the wet tip so that silver nitrate solution is transferred to the area to be treated. Use light pressure, do not press or rub the area with the tip – silver nitrate is brittle and may break if too much pressure is applied. If the tip breaks, make sure you recover all pieces. Tweezers are the best way to do this. If the tip falls off, it can still be dissolved in water by holding it with tweezers. Take care to prevent solution wandering on to neighbouring skin by protecting the surrounding tissue with a barrier such as petroleum jelly. Transfer enough solution to cover all the area being treated. Allow the treated area to dry. After drying, treated granulation tissue will fall away. Repeat for remaining overgranulation. The treated surface layer of warts and verrucas should be filed away using a fine emery board, for some types of verruca it will be necessary to cut away the hard callous-like surface to get to the soft tissue underneath. Repeat this for remaining wart/verruca tissue until the wart/verruca has gone.