Hyperhidrosis may afflict up to 4.8 percent of the U.S. population, meaning that millions of Americans experience excessive sweating. This chronic problem not only causes embarrassment, but it can also create obstacles in your daily work, especially if you must grip a steering wheel or other equipment with slick hands.
Fortunately, you can overcome your hyperhidrosis issues once you understand more about this condition. Consider the following points regarding this frustrating problem.
Why Some People Sweat Excessively
Under normal circumstances, sweat provides the body with a critical self-cooling mechanism. The body has 2.5 million eccrine glands that exude water, hormones, and waste. As the fluid from these sweat glands evaporates on the skin’s surface, it draws away heat, helping to lower body temperature.
The body usually sweats when triggered by emotional stress, extreme physical exertion, or a combination of environmental heat and humidity. However, some people sweat even in the absence of these conditions. This problem, known as hyperhidrosis, typically makes its first appearance in childhood.
Hyperhidrosis falls into two categories. Primary focal hyperhidrosis refers to excessive sweating as a standalone (and often inherited) condition. Secondary generalized hyperhidrosis occurs as a side effect of another underlying condition such as menopause, heart disease, hormonal imbalances, or cancer.
When Hyperhidrosis Requires Medical Attention
Secondary generalized hyperhidrosis may point toward a more serious health issue than hyperhidrosis itself. If you mostly sweat during sleep, in one particular area of the body, or while experiencing other symptoms such as weight loss, fever, or chest pain, you need to seek medical evaluation as soon as possible.
Even though primary focal hyperhidrosis doesn’t involve another health problem, you may still feel the need to seek professional help. Slick, sweaty hands may have trouble performing essential tasks, to the point of potentially putting your safety at risk. Excessive sweating may also interfere with your career prospects and personal life.
How Dermatologists Diagnose Hyperhidrosis
Dermatologists can use a few different approaches to diagnose hyperhidrosis and any associated health issues. You can provide important clues by describing your symptoms in detail, from the pattern of sweat formation to whether you sweat at night. Your medical and family history can also contribute to the diagnosis.
Laboratory tests can confirm or rule out other health conditions that might play a role in secondary generalized hyperhidrosis. For example, high levels of thyroid hormone in the blood may pinpoint a thyroid disorder as the cause of your excessive sweating, while low blood sugar may identify hypoglycemia as the culprit.
Other tests can also help the dermatologist understand more about your hyperhidrosis. Skin conductance testing can analyze sweating-related variations in your skin’s electrical characteristics. Thermoregulatory sweat testing uses a special powder to reveal the specific patterns and severity of your excessive sweat production.
What You Can Do to Control Your Hyperhidrosis
Once the dermatologist has a thorough understanding of your hyperhidrosis, you will receive recommendations for treatment. In some cases, effective treatment requires getting an associated underlying condition under control. This step may involve referrals to other medical specialists as needed.
Treatment of primary focal hyperhidrosis may involve a prescription antiperspirant that can control sweating in problem areas more effectively than over-the-counter products. Another treatment method, iontophoresis, delivers mild electrical currents to your hands or feet while you submerge them in water.
Medication may help you control your excessive sweating. Anticholinergic drugs can reduce your body’s production of chemicals that trigger sweat production. Botox injections can stop local nerves from instructing the eccrine glands to make sweat.
In the most stubborn cases, the dermatologist may recommend surgery. This surgery may involve either removing the sweat glands or disconnecting the nerves that send signals to the sweat glands.
Advanced Dermatology & Skin Cancer Specialists can help you master your hyperhidrosis. Contact any of our locations to learn more.
