Sweating is our body’s way of cooling us down when we’re hot. Sweat is what our body uses to regulate body temperature, and reward us for a good workout. We all sweat, but if it seems like you’re constantly soaking wet, you might suffer from hyperhidrosis. Also known as Polyhidrosis or Sudorrhea, it is a condition characterised by excessive sweating, that’s not necessarily related to higher temperatures or exercise. One may sweat so much that it soaks through clothes or drips off one’s hands.
Some celebs who are alleged to suffer from this according to reports are Halle Berry, Cameron Diaz, Steve Carrell and Robert Pattinson. Besides disrupting normal daily activities, hyperhidrosis can cause social anxiety, embarrassment; and psychological trauma. Hyperhidrosis tends to begin during adolescence. Mostly armpits, feet, hands are affected, because of their relatively high concentration of sweat glands.
Treatment of hyperhidrosis
(Especially for axillary hyperhidrosis)
Prior to any treatment for the underarms, an iodine- starch test can be done which displays blue-black discolouration in areas responsible for excess sweating.
Botulium toxin (Botox injections): Botox injections block nerves that trigger sweat glands. Onabotulotoxin A is a naturally, purified protein with the ability to temporarily block secretions of chemicals that are responsible for “turning on” the body’s sweat glands. By blocking, or interrupting this chemical messenger, botulinum toxin “turns off” sweating in the area where it has been injected. Results start to be noticeable approximately two to four days after treatment with full effects usually noted within two weeks. Results can last as long as 14 months. We may use anything between 100-120 units of botox for both underarms.
Micro Needling
A novel radio frequency (RF) treatment approach for axillary hyperhidrosis using the secret RF device from Ilooda Co. Ltd (Korea), appears to significantly reduce production of axillary sweat, offering hope for those patients who suffer from this condition. It is a fractional bi-polar RF system that employs microneedles to penetrate the skin at the preset depth ranging from 0.5 mm to 3.5 mm, and precisely delivers energy to the target site.
Secret RF treatment is painless under local anaesthesia. Despite a marked improvement in axillary hyperhidrosis after two sessions performed in six weeks interval, most patients were keen for further improvement, so a third or fourth session can certainly be considered. The cost of the treatment is Rs 8,000 per session. One no longer needs to suffer from embarrassing wet patches on underarms. It’s time to wear and flaunt all our silk and satin wear, and get rid of axillary odour.
— The writer is a Mumbai-based cosmetic surgeon.
