Hyperhidrosis also known as excessive sweating is not a commonly recognized disease, in fact only a small percentage of people having this problem are seeking medical help, but in reality this problem affects millions of people around the globe. This problem is a very serious medical condition where excessive sweating occurs on particular body parts with high concentration of sweat glands like the feet, palms, groin area and especially the underarms. Hyperhidrosis will not stop unless treatment for excessive sweating is applied.



While there are many excessive sweating remedies available today, the surgical option should be your last resort. Hyperhidrosis surgery is otherwise known as Endoscopic Thoracic Sympathectomy or ETS for short. This process involves making an incision in your back, inserting a small camera in the incision, through your rib cages in the search for your sympathetic nerves near your underarm. These nerves are responsible for telling your sweat glands to sweat. Unfortunately if you have Hyperhidrosis, these nerves are working on overdrive and a little too trigger happy. The solution? Destroy the nerves. Yes, it is permanent, once they are destroyed, you will not be sweating much from your underarms ever again. You may be thinking this is excellent news now, but it's not as great as it sounds.

You see, with Hyperhidrosis surgery, there is the possibility of compensatory sweating. This is excessive sweating of the back or abdomen usually in response to the destruction of the nerves near the underarm. Some people find this just as annoying as the underarm sweating and thus regret every having surgery in the first place. Granted the percent of people who experience this is small, it is worth noting as this treatment method is irreversible. This article will explore some of these procedures and give you better insight into these types of treatment options.

1. Sympathectomy: To control excessive sweating, doctors can go in and cut or remove the nerves that connect to the sweat glands. It is the nerves that send messages to the sweat glands that cause sweating to occur. By cutting off the nerves, it eliminates the ability to send messages so to speak. Having a sympathectomy should be the last treatment choice on anyone's list. It has been done for 80 years now and it involves the nerves that lie in the back of the chest near the spinal column.

2. Sweat Gland Removal: This is another one of many excessive sweating remedies that has been around for quite a while. It involves removing the sweat glands that are around the area causing the sweating problems. Removing sweat glands is the most often recommended approach when other remedies fail to work. This type of surgery is meant for underarm sweating, not on the hands or feet.

This type of surgery has proven to be effective, but there can be side effects which you'll want to be aware of.

Other less commonly known procedures include:

Thorax Sympathectomy - This is a very painful surgery where the surgeon must cut open a large part of the chest and separate the rib cage in order to reach the nerves to be cut. It requires a tremendous time to heal and is not a recommended way to control excessive sweating.

Thoracoscopic Sympathectomy - This is a procedure that involves making small incisions just under the armpit area. The surgeon will insert a tiny camera into the area to find the chain of nerves, where they will then cut open the area and clip the nerve endings.

This is a costly procedure that also has its share of possible complications including the possibility of permanent nerve damage.

Surgery for excessive sweating remedies should be the last option. There are many other easier methods in treating sweating problems that you should consider first. If those fail, then look to surgery.