Did you know that Polyclinic Milojević is equally as efficient in getting rid of unwanted consequences of excessive sweating as in fighting the signs of aging?

Hyperhidrosis is a condition of excessive sweat secretion which is usually connected to intense physical activity, spending time in very high temperatures, wearing inappropriate clothes, consumption of spicy food and alcohol, but also stress, pregnancy, and being overweight. Also, some people have genetically inherited the propensity for excessive sweating. These people cannot solve their problem by changing their lifestyle since their sweat glands are always more active than the ones in an average person. The body of a healthy adult on average secretes around 700 ml of sweat per day, but this quantity can even be tripled in extreme conditions, such as high temperatures and physical effort. Here we are talking only about the average, and there is no universal quantity of sweat that is considered "normal" since it differs from one person to another, depending on their body build, age, and life habits.

There are two kinds of sweat glands in the human body - merocrine and apocrine. Our body contains up to 5 million merocrine glands which are most abundant in the feet and palms, and they secrete sweat mostly made up of water. Apocrine glands are much fewer, and they are most densely distributed in the armpits, around sex organs, and in breasts - these glands secrete sweat that contains proteins and carbohydrates. The bacterial decomposition of this secretion leads to a release of metabolites and a foul odor. Therefore, there is a foul odor in the armpit area, but this odor does not develop on the palms, even in cases of excessive sweating.

Luckily, modern medicine gives us a chance to solve, or at least alleviate the problem of excessive sweating in a completely safe and minimally invasive way. We help patients whose everyday lives are made difficult by excessive sweating with a precise application of botulinum toxin type A, known as Botox.

Reversible blockage of secretion of sweat glands is achieved with the intradermal injection of botulinum toxin type A in the armpit skin - the result is a reduction in sweating in the treated area. Before the treatment, it is necessary to estimate the distribution and density of sweat glands in the desired area. Before the injection, an anesthetic cream is applied for the treatment to be almost painless for the patient. Many famous personalities have undergone this treatment, such as tennis players Iva Majoli and Goran Ivanišević who have publicly expressed their satisfaction with the results since the treatment for excessive sweating helped them both in their professional and private lives.

The effect is visible after a few days already, and the patients of Polyclinic Milojević are thrilled by the results. Sometimes they tell me that this treatment has literally changed their lives because it reduced sweating by 80 to 100%. People who have never experienced this problem do not know how it can impair the quality of life so that’s why the satisfaction of my patients and the increase in their self-confidence makes me especially happy.

This treatment can be used to treat excessive sweating not only in the armpit region, but also on some other body parts, such as palms, feet, and forehead. Treatment for sweaty hands is becoming more and more requested by patients because sweaty palms can create a psychological problem in case of handshaking or in situations when palms have to be used for a longer time. The treatment itself is only ten minutes long, so you will need around one hour for the entire preparation and performance. Its effect is usually visible within five to seven days after the treatment, but in some cases, we need to wait for around ten days. However, that is nothing to worry about.

A Botox treatment for the reduction of excessive sweating does not have adverse effects on one’s health. There might be a milder local reaction, such as a slight edema or a burning sensation at the place of the injection, but that is a reaction to the injection and not to the applied Botox. In rare cases, excessive sweating in other body regions might occur, but that is almost irrelevant in comparison with the initial problem that makes the patients seek my help.

When we talk about counterindications, this treatment is not performed on persons whose excessive sweating is a result of some other disease or a condition that requires medical treatment, as well as on persons who have already had sweat glands surgically removed in the same region, or they suffer from blood coagulation disorders. Other than that, there are no obstacles to undergoing the treatment since this treatment does not have any systematic side effects.

Application of Botox in the region where we wish to reduce sweating has a preventive role - by temporarily blocking the conductivity of chemical signals of the nerves, sweat glands are much less stimulated to produce sweat. There is no blockage of glands in any way or any kind of physical blockage of already-produced sweat. This is only a way to prevent the creation of new sweat - and this is what my patients want to know the most about this treatment.

The results usually last between 9 and 12 months, but after that sweating comes back gradually. Most patients need to undergo the procedure once to twice a year to maintain satisfactory results. Even though most of them get the treatment before summer to avoid uncomfortable symptoms of excessive sweating in the season of high temperatures, it is important to point out that this treatment is suitable for all seasons.