Hyperhidrosis Treatment – Stop The Wet In The Sweat

Hyperhidrosis also known as diaphoresis is a medical state where a person suffers from abnormal perspiration. Or if you put it more simple, you sweat more than your body needs you to in order to cool the body temperature. The sweating can manifest in any part your body such as armpits, hands, face, head, feet and so on. When you start with the hyperhidrosis treatment, one of the first steps will be evaluating your health in general. This includes checking your nervous system functions running blood tests which will reveal any underneath problems you may have which are responsible for this hormone imbalances. In some cases this will be enough. Because by alleviating the cause may relieve the hyperhidrosis. If not, the doctor can move on determining the best adequate hyperhidrosis treatment for you according to your previously established condition.

A good thing is that you can experiment with different methods until you find one that works for you and your lifestyle. Generally, doctors recommend their patients to start with the easiest and less invasive methods accessible and work their way up if necessary. Below listed are several options available to you. First, we will start with more simple types of hyperhidrosis treatment and move on to stronger and more invasive treatments.

1. Antiperspirants

This represents the simplest hyperhidrosis treatment available today. They vary in their strengths, and can be acquired using prescription as well as over-the-counter. What does it do? Antiperspirants block duct openings which lead to sweat glands and therefore stop the perspiration from reaching the surface. The most popular one as well as highly effective is aluminium chloride (20%-25%) in alcohol. For maximum effect apply it in the evening 2-3 times a week. This type of hyperhidrosis treatment is most adequate for moderate sweating, but you have to follow the instructions.

Most individuals can utilize antiperspirants on other body parts such as feet to reduce the excessive sweating although this may cause irritation. Also, antiperspirant is not the same thing as deodorant. Deodorant uses antibacterial effetcs to lessen the body odor. A possible side effect can be sore red skin, but that can be decreased by making sure that the skin is dry prior to antiperspirant application, or by applying hydrocortisone cream.

2. Iontophoresis

If antiperspirants do not do you any good, then the next step is usually iontophoresis. It provides excellent results when used on armpits, hands and feet. Funny thing is that the medicine is not really sure why or how iontophoresis works. But the good news is that it really does work. For over 80% of patients this hyperhidrosis treatment provides satisfying results. Most times the sweating is either reduced drastically or at least blocked for a longer period. What doest iontophoresis look like? Well, let us say that you have excessive feet sweat. You put your feet into the water, and then mild electric current (15-18A via a D/C generator) is passed through it and eventually magnified until you feel like it is tingling you.

All that takes about 20-40 minutes. You do not have to go to the doctor the receive this hyperdrosis treatment, you can easily buy it for affordable prices as this method is a do-it-yourself project. You should also check it the hospital nearby offers a trial to verify if the hyperhidrosis treatment is functioning as hospitals sometimes do just that. Obviously, this method would be difficult to apply on armpits so in this case paded electrodes are used.

3. Botox

Yes, believe it or not botox is not only used to fight wrinkles, but also abnormal sweating in armpits. Botox has been federally approved in USA and the U.K. to stop hyperhidrosis in armpits, nonetheless can be used on hands, feet and face as well if necessary. It is expensive, especially given the fact that you have to repeat it regularly, but also does not require high maintenance. Only small doses are injected as this is one of the most lethal poisons known to man. In most cases, the botox lasts about 5-8 month but in some patients may continue to benefit from it for almost 16 months. After that, you must repeat the process. The side effects of this type of hyperhidrosis treatment are flu-similar symptoms, strong pain and temporarily weakness.

For those who suffer from severe condition of excessive sweating and want long lasting results, they can opt for a surgery, although this is also looked as the riskiest hyperhidrosis treatment. More precisely, we are talking about ETS (Endoscopic Thoracic Sympathectomy). What the doctor does regarding this particular surgery is cut or clamp the certain nerves which are the cause of excessive perspiration. This type of hyperhidrosis treatment is most common among hyperhidrosis surgeries.

Other methods regarding surgery can include localized approaches like scraping, cutting or suctioning the sweat glands out. Or the doctor will use an approach which schemes up all these previously mentioned methods. Surgical procedures also include some side effects, and especially one in particular that a patient certainly does not want, and that is compensatory sweating. Because the body already has the tendency of producing massive amounts of sweat, after the surgery the body thinks continues to believe that and locates new places to manifest that sweat. A patient who had ETS surgery could be disappointed as the sweating can be increased in different locations. Like, if before you were experiencing excessive armpit sweat, then now to compensate for the signal not being sent, now his stomach is perspiring too much. Medicine is researching a way to find a hyperhidrosis treatment that will minimize the possibility of appearance of these side effects.