Sweaty Palms are also known by their medical term, Palmar Hyperhidrosis . Profuse hand perspiration is by far the most common kind of hyperhidrosis. The term hypersympathetic activity is a more exact term for sweaty palms. This is because extreme perspiration is caused by the heightened activity in the sympathetic chain. The sympathetic chain is a part of the autonomic nervous system. This is situated inside the chest cavity and it doesn’t have anything to do with the motoric or sensory functions of our body.

Extreme hand perspiration can be very harsh and aggravating to the person with the disorder. This normally affects a person’s daily life and affects both fundamental functions and social interactions. In about forty percent of people that are afflicted with severe hand sweating, the problem can be mostly accredited to genetics. Sweaty palms normally develop during early childhood and may become more severe towards the late adolescence and into early adulthood.

The International Hyperhidrosis Society segregates the severity of Palmar Hyperhidrosis or Profuse Hand Perspiration into 4 subgroups. Group number 1 consists of patients that only have mild hand sweating or perspiration.  This group consists of patients that do not experience any functional or social troubles due to their condition. On the other hand are the patients that experience extreme and excessive hand perspiration. This level of moisture experienced by sufferers is described as dripping or drenching and this adversely affects them on a daily basis. Patients portrayed in the latter group rarely have encouraging results from conservative procedures such as Drionic, Drysol, Maxim, Oral Medications or Botox.

The medical surgery called Thoracic Sympathectomy has been developed and improved over the last five to six decades. In the previous decades, the procedure was made either through the lower neck, at the back or on the chest cavity. These methods involved major surgical intervention that required very long hospital recovery. On top of that, the operation also caused pain and excessive scarring to the patient. These are the reasons why the operation was not commonly chosen by physicians – and not very popular with patients, either.

Over the last two decades, improvements have been made and many successful surgeries were done with the aid of miniaturized cameras. This procedure using the aid of miniature cameras is known as Endoscopic Surgery. Access into the body cavities such as the abdomen or chest is done through miniature incisions wherein a probe that contains a camera can be put into. This is a less invasive procedure and it ends up with minimal surgical damage and a speedier recovery for the patient. Most of the surgeries today are done on an outpatient basis – the patient can go back home on the same day that the procedure is done.  The procedure achieves the same if not better results as the open surgeries that were done in the previous decades. Plus, it has the benefit of a short hospital stay and it does not have the side effects of severe pain and excessive scarring.

Severe facial blushing is another manifestation of increased sympathetic activity. It is also called social phobia, but sometimes mistaken as rosacea. Often, patients experience a glowing red face (blushing) and this lasts longer than ordinary facial blushing. Patients report that prior to its onset, they feel intense heat in the facial area. The redness may start over the cheeks, but may radiate onto the forehead, neck and ears. Ordinary facial blushing, which usually first appears in late adolescence, can be socially triggered. Everyone normally responds to social stimulus (such as embarrassment) through ordinary facial blushing.

The hypersympathetic activity causes the facial skin to appear greasy and in some cases, causes facial sweating as well. Facial blushing may occur alone, but it may also occur in tandem with facial sweating.

Facial sweating may be triggered by slight increases in temperature or humidity. Sweating may not only involve the face, but also the scalp. In some cases, it also extends to the neck as well. Excessive sweating in these areas for no apparent reason may actually be a condition of facial hyperhidrosis.

Facial hyperhidrosis is a medical condition, which is believed to be genetically determined and is not necessarily related to being overweight. It is a medical condition that, like many other types of hyperhidrosis, causes social in addition to physical problems for the individual.

Excessive sweating is often a cause of embarrassment and frustration. In the case of facial hyperhidrosis, it could manifest in the most unexpected time and in the most embarrassing situations like when talking to people, or being in an important meeting. If an individual suffers from any form of hyperhidrosis, sweating happens even in the absence of any nervousness, anxiety, or stress.

People who suffer from severe facial sweating or facial hyperhidrosis find themselves soaking with sweat on the face and scalp even while doing simple, effortless tasks. It is not uncommon for women who suffer from this condition to wear their hair short to keep them tidy. Also, they find wearing of make-up inconvenient and impractical because it will just run. Some others opt to carry a towel around their necks for convenience and stay in air-conditioned locations, avoid the outdoors, and refrain from attending social functions or activities. This limits their opportunities for social interaction. Before many of them realize it, facial hyperhidrosis has succeeded in making a tremendous social impact on their lives.

Anxiety medications are available to control the anxiety of those who suffer from social phobia. Meanwhile, involuntary and uncontrolled facial sweating and blushing is best treated with Endoscopic Thoracic Sympathectomy (ETS). The surgery is performed under general anaesthesia, and involves the partial removal of involuntary nerves from the chest area. These nerves are said to control the diameter of the blood vessels. The scope of ETS procedure extends to patients who suffer only from severe facial blushing. The success rate for facial blushing and facial hyperhidrosis is about 80 to 85%. The same procedure is also effective for palmar and axillary hyperhidrosis.