A very embarrassing problem that many people experience is excessive sweating. Face sweating or hyperhidrosis of the face is particularly embarrassing for young adults. Read on to know what are the causes of this condition and how to deal with it.
All of us sweat when we are in a situation, wherein, either the atmospheric temperature is high or we are performing certain rigorous physical activities. Sweating is the body’s natural mechanism of controlling and regulating body temperature. There are sweat glands present all over the external body that help in carrying out this function. However, when these sweat glands are hyperactive in nature, the condition is termed as hyperhidrosis or excessive sweating. Face is one of the areas that is usually spared of hyperhidrosis, but at times, a person may complain of excess amount of sweating on the facial area as well as on the head.
Causes
Unfortunately, it is not exactly understood as to what causes excessive facial sweating in an individual. There are many causes that have been put forth and they vary greatly from person to person. In many cases, the main cause of excessive head sweating is that it is genetic in nature. However, if one were to analyze the pathophysiology of excess sweating regarding the facial area, then it is usually due to malfunctioning of the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system is actually that part of the nervous system, that is responsible for the ‘flight and fight’ action of the body. It leads to an increase in pupil dilation, sweating, and also increases the blood pressure.
Symptoms
The hyperhidrosis symptoms include a patchy and wet look on the face at all times. People who have this problem, are not able to wear make-up and hence, they tend to avoid parties, functions, and similar social events. These people often have a towel in their hand or more conveniently, around their neck, at all times. Due to excess sweating, they prefer to keep their hair short and cropped, and prefer to stay in cold environment. Due to this condition, sometimes, they may have very low self-esteem.
Treatment
There are many ways to deal with this problem of sweating. Face treatment involves creams that contain aluminum chloride. If this does not work, then there are many anticholinergic drugs that can help to suppress the activity of the sympathetic nervous system. If the sweating is due to anxiety, then antianxiety drugs can be given to the person in question.
If all the conservative methods are exhausted, then surgical options can be evaluated. If you’re wondering about how to stop facial sweating, then one simple way is by getting botox treatment done, which aids in temporarily disabling the functioning of sweat glands in that region. However, the only way of permanently treating excessive sweating of the face is with the help of a procedure known as endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy. In this procedure, the thoracic ganglion of the main sympathetic chain is either cut, burnt, or clamped, so as to prevent impulses from reaching the sweat glands of the face. However, the results greatly vary and this treatment is said to be more successful for patients suffering from excessive underarm sweating, when compared to facial sweating.
Face is the most visible part of the body, so this can be quite an embarrassing and discomfiting condition to deal with. However, it is best to visit a dermatologist and evaluate all the options present before you and take a decision regarding which treatment option to go in for.
