The wart and the area around it will be cleaned. Under local anaesthetic, the wart is scrapped off and the base burned. A tool with a thin, needle-like hot tip is put on your wart. The skin cells are killed by the heat which burns and will be removed. The area around your wart may look like it is charred (white and swollen). The treatment will take about 20 to 30 minutes. The area will be covered with a bandage.

After surgery you may have some pain, swelling, and redness. It is very important to keep your wound clean with soap and water to prevent infection. You may cover it with a small bandage to protect it for a few days. If the bandage gets wet, change it with a clean, dry bandage. A soft scab will form over the treated area. It will drop off by itself and leave a small scar.

Electrocautery usually leaves behind a wound which may take 1 to 6 weeks to heal. The time it takes the wound to heal depends on the size of the wart. Healing time may be prolonged if a large area of tissue is burned and the wart may need to be treated more than once.