Armpit Sweating (Hyperhydrosis)

To keep hyperhydrosis under control there are several treatments available depending on the intensity of the disorder.

The most effective technique consists of injecting a type of protein near the sweat glands that temporarily blocks the nerve terminals that trigger their activity.

The treatment is applied on a outpatient basis (in our clinic) in a single session that barely lasts 20-30 minutes, and the patient can resume his normal life’s activities immediately. The treatment produces a long-lasting effect, usually about 6 to 9 months-long. It doesn’t require sedation and no side effects are known beyond ecchymosis (bruises) and a slight edema (swelling) that disappears in a few days.

Axillary Hyperhydrosis or excessive armpit skin sweating is a disorder that shows up in around three of every hundred individuals, greatly interfering with their day-to-day activities.

In most patients’ cases hyperhydrosis has no known causes although a genetic inheritance factor is suspected, as there are up to a 65% of cases in which a relative suffers the same condition. It develops during childhood and puberty and becomes a lifelong disorder. There is a small percentage of cases where the cause lies with known factors such as the use of certain pharmacological substances, infections, excess weight, hormonal changes, etc.

Excessive sweating can induce a state of chronic anxiety in the sufferer due to the way it impacts social relationships, which only contributes to worsening the problem. Many patients showing the condition see their quality of life as diminished and feel at a loss of control as sweating occurs no matter the ambient temperature or their emotional state.

Aesthetic and social inconvenience aside, Axillary Hyperhydrosis can impact the patient’s health too: excess armpit sweat can result in medical conditions such as dermatitis and fungal or bacterial infections. Those can lead to complications such as abscesses which can require surgery to resolve.

The most serious cases of hyperhydrosis can be treated surgically through a sympathectomy procedure.