Video
Voiceover:
Earlier, Gemma came to the clinic to show Dr Pixie her excessively sweaty hands.
Dr Pixie:
It…it’s dripping! It’s like you’ve put your hands into…into water, actually.
Gemma:
Yeah.
Dr Pixie:
Or you’ve been to the loo and you’ve washed your hands but you haven’t dried them.
Gemma:
Yeah.
Voiceover:
Although there are other solutions to this problem, because Gemma’s case was so severe, her only option was to undergo a surgical procedure. She has come to Wythenshawe Hospital to see vascular expert Mr Mo Baguneid.
Mr Baguneid:
The operation we’re considering here is called endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy. Essentially it involves, uh, dividing a small nerve in the chest, which really is very effective in reducing sweating in the hands. The problem is, about one in five also experience sweating elsewhere, and that’s what we call compensatory sweating. And that can be in the, in the groin, it can be in the belly, it can be in the back. What I tend to suggest in these cases is that your dominant hand, the one that you shake people’s hands with…
Gemma:
Yeah.
Mr Baguneid:
...if we treat that side first, and see the effect you have, and the amount of compensatory sweating you get, from doing both together.
Gemma:
Yeah, I definitely want to do that, I’d rather just do the one first.
Mr Baguneid:
Gemma’s got a condition called hyperhidrosis, basically excessive sweating. Now, we’re all meant to sweat—I mean if you run, you’d expect to sweat. If the excessive sweating occurs at a time when the stimulus…in other words, somebody gets anxious and they sweat very heavily, well, that’s hyperhidrosis, that’s the condition she has at the moment.
Voiceover:
Having taken the decision to go ahead with the operation, the first task for the team is to gain access to the sympathetic nerve in the chest cavity. They start by deflating the right-hand lung.
Mr Baguneid:
We’ll now clamp the right side, and release the lung to activate pressure.
Voiceover:
This is a crucial part, because if Gemma can’t support her breathing on one lung, the operation cannot be performed. Mr Baguneid then cuts a hole under the armpit, and places a port so he can insert a small camera.
Mr Baguneid:
This camera goes in, we’ll see a little bit of lung tissue there. And just above, we’re now inside the lung cavity. And in fact, you can just probably make out, these are, this is the nerve, that white structure next to the vein, the vein being the big blue structure next to it here, on the side. That’s the nerve that we actually need to divide.
Voiceover:
Once the nerve is identified, it is cauterised in two places to stop it working.
Mr Baguneid:
So that’s the procedure complete. What we need to see now is that the lung needs to completely re-expand to fill the cavity up. And you’ll see it now.
Voiceover:
Once the lung is re-inflated, all Gemma needs is a few stitches. Gemma should see an instant result, but will have to check for any compensatory sweating.
Voiceover:
Two weeks later, Gemma’s back to tell Dr Pixie whether she’ll have the other hand done.
Dr Pixie:
So how did you get on with the operation?
Gemma:
Fantastic! Really happy about it, yeah, it’s great.
Dr Pixie:
How…one side or both sides, did you just get one side done?
Gemma:
Just one side done, yeah.
Dr Pixie:
Okay, so tell me what happened.
Gemma:
Um, well, I just went in, it was dead straightforward, tiny little cut, um, under my arm. And basically I woke up and I had a dry hand, it was just fantastic.
Dr Pixie:
Brilliant, can I have a look?
Gemma:
Yup.
Dr Pixie:
That is amazing. It’s so dry. And then this, which has, the one that hasn’t been done is so…wet.
Gemma:
Yup.
Dr Pixie:
Before you had the operation, what I was worried was about compensatory hyperhidrosis.
Gemma:
Yeah, yeah.
Dr Pixie:
Which basically means you sweat elsewhere. Have you had any problems with that, on your face, your back or anything?
Gemma:
No, nothing at all.
Dr Pixie:
Nothing at all.
Gemma:
No, it’s been great.
Dr Pixie:
So are you going to have the other one done?
Gemma:
Yes, definitely, yeah.
Dr Pixie:
Brilliant. And when we met, you were having a really difficult time with your baby, trying to change the baby and everything because of this sweating. Has…has it made a difference?
Gemma:
Yeah, it has made a difference, and it’s just become so much easier, everything. It’s just fantastic, it’s just changed my life completely, and I can imagine that when this one’s done, it’s just going to be great.
Dr Pixie:
Superb.
Gemma:
So, I’m really happy, yeah.
Dr Pixie:
Gemma, lovely to see you back again. Do please keep in touch with me with regard to the other hand.
Gemma:
I will do, thank you very much, cheers!
Dr Pixie:
You’re welcome, it’s been a pleasure, bye-bye.
Gemma:
Bye.
Gemma came to see Dr Pixie with hands that were so sweaty she had to wear gloves to hold her baby in case she dropped her. After seeing a specialist, Gemma decided to undergo surgery to ease the sweating. The nature of this surgery means that sometimes the sweat is directed elsewhere on the body so Gemma decides to only get one hand fixed at a time to see if the sweat will find a new way out. Returning to the surgery Gemma noted the success of the procedure and now plans to have a further op to sort out her left hand too.
Patient Name: Gemma Hudson
Condition: Sweaty Hands
Specialist: Mr Mo Baguneid, Consultant Vascular Surgeon
Hospital: South Manchester University Hospital
Length of procedure: Approx 1 hour
Yes
NoComments and Questions
You can share your experiences and thoughts with other Embarrassing Bodies site-users below. Comments & Questions are reviewed by moderators, but if you see anything on the site that worries you, please report it and one of our moderators will look at it as soon as possible.
Please note: Unfortunately Channel 4 cannot respond to individual inquiries. If you have any concerns, you can check out NHS Choices, but ultimately it is always best to check with a health professional.
Hi I'm 13 and I have really sweaty hands and feet and thighs to.. Mainly hands though but I'm to young for surgery and it's to expensive so is there a cheap way to stop them being so sweaty?
Hi there, I am a Hyperhyrosis suffer with my hands, feet and groin areas being mainly affected. I am really, really down about this condition as I have very little quality of life due to it. I am considering getting the surgery and have started the ball rolling on it already however I am terrified. I have tried sprays, deodrants, talcs, beta blockers, Iontophoresis machine and botox injections to no avail. I have now made the decision that surgery is the only option for me but I am terrified about it in case it goes wrong or in case it will have effects later on in life for me (I am a 29yr old female). Anyway, I am wondering if there is any possibility of being able to get in contact with Gemma? You may pass this email to her or I can forward my details if required. I would really like to find out about her experience and if any compensatory sweating ever affected her since she's had the surgery. My hands look exactly like hers in the clip - however my feet and groin do the same too. I'm just miserable about it all. Please advise me as I would greatly appreciate any assistance. Kind regards, Trish
I know how you feel i have suffered with this condition ever since i could remember my hands and feet both sweat horribly..nothing else works i have tried everything:( this is what is left as a last result to having surgery. I have had my consultation with the vascular surgeon all i need to do is book a date now. I am just so scared about the compensatory sweating i wouldn't know how to cope with it. Gemma is very lucky if she hasn't suffered with any compensatory sweating. I think i am just going to go though with the surgery as it's so difficult to live my life even at work, or when i'm on holiday.
it has been really helpful to me reading these comments because i didn't realise excess sweating was a common problem i just thought i had something wrong with me!! at school i used to have to wear blouses and they were always drenched under the underarms however since my confidence has grown i no longer find that a problem. however my hands and feet seem to have a life of their own and i have found it impossible to hold hands with boyfriends or go dancing - which i love - because i never know when ill start sweating. the worse thing is it really goes through you when they get all clammy and sticky so that you cant touch anything. its so embarressing i went for a treatment the other day and the therapist had to get me a towel to dry my hands on. the trouble is, just the thought of sweating can bring about panic attacks, which of course makes it even worse. now i know there are solutions im really going to try to sort it out.
Hi, I had suffered from hyper hydrosis on my hands and Feet for many years from a child and like most of you tried absolutely everything but nothing worked. Then one day I saw a program on TV with a girl that suffered with the same problem and had surgery and her hands stopped sweating. I couldn’t believe that I had found a cure. I then contacted the hospital got the surgeons name and wrote him a letter. He then referred me to a surgeon near me in London and I made the appointment and went to see him. He told me that he had been doing this operation for the last 20 or so years and that my hands would be cured for good. He asked me if I sweated around my front and back, I said no because that was one place that I didn’t sweat from, He told me that I might get a bit of sweating in them areas after But I wasn’t bothered about a little sweating on my back or front if it meant I could cure this sweating on my hands. So I went ahead with the operation I had to work for some time to pay for this as it was being done private around £3500 at the time. The operation involved key whole surgery to burn certain nerves behind the lungs. As soon has I woke from the operation my hands were instantly dry the first time in years I couldn’t be more happier when the surgeon came to see me the following day I held my hand out to shake his which would be something I would never have done before. My life had changed for the better I could now do so many things that I shied away from before. Well that’s what thought anyway Within a few months I started to notice my back sweating and then it started to get much worse with my chest sweating as well not just a little sweating either I’m talking as if I had just run a marathon I would be drenched for no reason the problem some 15 years later has not improved it has totally changed my life I have to watch where I go. Always have to where a vest under my clothes and even have a jumper on in the summer to hide the sweat. So all I would say to any one no matter how bad your hands get DON’T GO FOR THE SURGERY if you think things are bad now they get 10 times worse after. Even thoe they have now stopped burning the nerves, they now clamp them so they can reverse things when they go wrong I would still advice against it.
I am 49 years old , I have suffered from sweating for a number of years , have tried a number of tablets from the gp but nothing seems to have worked , I don't like to go out in the sun , even hanging the washing out makes my face sweat so much it looks like I have had a workout at the gym . My hair is dripping wet all the time even in the winter I only wear a t shirt . I had a full hysterectomy when I was 39 so now I have to cope with the flushes on top of this , also I have noticed I am growing facial hair on my chin , under my chin and even in the crack of my backside the hair has grown longer . I can't have h r t as my mother has had breast cancer . Please could you help :-((
Thanks so much Ewan. your advice was really helpful.
I'm 25 and i'm really tired of have a sweaty hands,feet and under arms.i like to do ETS. do u think is it really worth?
Lida my advice would be no, ETS is a very bad procedure. The side-effects just are not worth the benefits in my opinion. I would suggest trying other options like iontophoresis, and the anti-perspirants like Driclor, Odaban etc. :-)
i have a sweaty hands and feet and i dont know how to get any help. i will be goin to univeristy this year and i want to become but i am really scared becouse of my sweaty hands and feet. everyday thinking bout my sweaty hands and feet makes me hav low self esteem and avoid doing certain things. can someone plzz help meee!
I thought I would share my comments about ETS having had the operation back in 1995. I grew up with severe sweating of hands and feet and I can remember trying different non invasive treatments that didn't work. At school I couldn't bear the squeek of the cotton in needlwork as the damp cotton passed through the damp material I was holding. I lived with it as best as I could and it wasn't till I joined the ambulance service that I saw it as a real problem. I used to have to wear lifting gloves to ensure a good grip when using the carrying chair or stretcher and found that I could fill a pair of latex gloves with sweat running from my palms to my elbows. I used to drive with a towel on my lap so I could wipe my hands to make sure the steering wheel didnt slip. I found out about ETS and decided to have it done and for better or worse I am glad that I had it done. No more sweaty hands but I do get quite bad compensatory sweating from the breast down all the way to my toes which can be embarressing but I have learned to live with it and always wear a vest or double up on t shirts. But I think I was one of the lucky ones and anybody who wants it done should look into it very carefully as some of the side affects can be quite serious. I still get sweaty feet but can enjoy sandals in the summer by using driclor or go to the pharmacist and ask for anhydrol forte (same thing just twice as much) you need to experiment and persevere though as not enough and it doesn't work, too much and it irritates and you spend the night scratching in your sleep. Hope this helps.
i have excessive sweating on my palms, this stops me from being confident on shaking other peoples hands and i am a sports person which means the game should end with a shake hand but i tend not too and people think it is desrespectfull but if i do, they say ewww why is your hands sweating so much :/ It also stops me from physical conctact with some friends and girls a lot times :/ which either makes them not like me as much or make them think i am fasty :/ i am looking foward on finding a surgery place close to my area or go all the way to manchester to get it done :)
I have the same problem with my armpits and hands throughout my life. No matter what I do I just sweat and find it embarrassing and I'm awfully self-concious of it. I have been prescribed driclor for my hands but then went to use it on my underarms and they got irritated and dry and swollen. I shave them too but that's fine. Is there anything I can do or use to stop my underarm sweating that doesn't include botox and is an easy solution? Many thanks in advance.