How to Diagnose Hyperhidrosis

David Pariser, MD is an active dermatologist and a founding board member of the International Hyperhidrosis Society (IHHS). He is a professor in the Department of Dermatology at Eastern Virginia Medical School in Norfolk, Virginia, where he is also the senior physician with Pariser Dermatology Specialists, Ltd. 

In this video, Dr David Pariser discusses how to properly diagnose patients' varying symptoms as hyperhidrosis.

Visit SweatHelp.org for Hyperhidrosis Awareness Month to find more research and education about the subject.

This video is made in collaboration with the International Hyperhidrosis Society.

TRANSCRIPT-

Dr David Pariser: There are different kinds of hyperhidrosis, different kinds of excessive sweating.

What we're talking about here today is something called primary focal hyperhidrosis which is sweating in one and sometimes more body areas, usually symmetrical that is from one side of the body to the other. Same on both hands, same on both underarms, same on both feet, or other body areas.

That is often reduced at night. That occurs at times when you're not supposed to sweat. You're supposed to sweat when you're hot, exercising, when you're nervous, but sweating that occurs at other times is considered to be hyperhidrosis.

Now, there is such a thing as generalized hyperhidrosis, which is a secondary effect. Certain medications can cause it, certain diseases, particularly endocrine and other disease, and cause of neurological problems. That's another thing which we're really not talking about today.

We're talking about the primary focal hyperhidrosis. We don't really know the cause, although we think that it has something to do with the central nervous system, signaling to the sweat glands to sweat at times when they're not supposed to.

Let me just say what the purpose of sweat is, probably should talk about that. The purpose of sweating is to cool your body. That's the purpose. When the sweat glands in the skin put water, sweat on the skin surface, it evaporates and that's what cools you. It's just like how your air conditioner works.

You think about it for a minute, when you take a shower and get out of the shower and you're all wet, you feel cold in the room. As soon as you dry off, you don't feel cold anymore, and then room temperature hasn't changed, but what has changed is that when you were when you wet, the water on your skin was starting to evaporate and that's what was cooling you.