Hyperhidrosis of the feet
Hyperhidrosis of the feet is excessive sweating in the soles. Excessive sweating is characterized by an unpleasant odor, frequent dermatological infections and itching. Therefore, despite the fact that hyperhidrosis is not recognized by official medicine as a disease, this pathology gives a person severe discomfort. To get rid of hyperhidrosis, it is necessary to find out the causes of its occurrence and only then try to eliminate them.
Content:
- Symptoms of foot hyperhidrosis
- Causes of foot hyperhidrosis
- Diagnostics
- Treatment of foot hyperhidrosis
- Prevention
Symptoms of foot hyperhidrosis
Hyperhidrosis of the feet is expressed in increased sweating, which occurs for no apparent reason. That is, the feet remain wet when a person is at rest, has no visible symptoms of the disease, and the ambient temperature is not elevated. Socks, knee-highs, tights - all these items of clothing are constantly getting wet and require changing several times a day. The same goes for shoes.
Another obvious symptom of foot hyperhidrosis is an unpleasant odor that comes from the feet. Moreover, it is not possible to cope with it with the help of regular hygiene measures. The use of auxiliary products (deodorants, aromatic pads, etc.) gives only a temporary effect.
Hyperhidrosis of the feet is often accompanied by fungal infections. The increased moisture in the foot area and the "greenhouse effect" created in the shoe is a favorable environment for the reproduction of mycotic microorganisms. Therefore, the fight against persistent fungal infections of the foot becomes part of the life of a person with hyperhidrosis. Signs of a fungal infection are itching and burning of the skin of the feet and the skin between the toes, peeling and redness of the dermis.
The following signs will indicate the psychogenic nature of foot hyperhidrosis:
- The sudden onset of hyperhidrosis, which does not depend on the person's age.
- Before sweating began to manifest itself clearly, a person could suffer psychological trauma.
- Sweating decreases during the night's rest.
- The disease has a recurrent course and worsens after emotional excitement.
- The most sweaty feet, palms and armpits.
When hyperhidrosis of the feet is a consequence of disturbances in the work of the autonomic nervous system, then this is accompanied by the following symptoms:
- The limbs are cold and damp.
- The skin is pale.
- Restless sleep.
- A person does not tolerate bright light, heat, and drinking drinks containing caffeine.
- There is a tremor of the limbs, chilliness.
Primary (idiopathic) hyperhidrosis will be indicated by the following symptoms:
- Early manifestation of the disease (in childhood or adolescence).
- The presence of a similar pathology in a blood relative (not a prerequisite).
- Sweating does not increase with emotional excitement.
- Most often, feet, palms and armpits sweat.
- Sweating does not increase during the night's rest.
- In general, there are no other pathological symptoms.
With endocrine hyperthyroidism, sweating increases at night and in the evening. There is no connection with nervous overstrain.
Causes of foot hyperhidrosis
One should distinguish true hyperhidrosis of the feet from banal sweating and violations of personal hygiene rules. Sweating is a natural process in the body's thermoregulation. Thus, he tries to solve the problem of heat transfer during overheating, with excitement or other factors.
Therefore, do not worry if the sweating of the legs increases for the following reasons:
- Long time in the shoes.
- Wearing clothes or shoes made of substandard materials.
- Wearing shoes that do not fit.
- Violations of the rules of foot skin care.
- Violation of thermoregulation in the body: its overheating while in a room with a high air temperature, during active physical exertion, etc.
All these factors create favorable conditions for the development of foot hyperhidrosis, but it is enough to eliminate them, and the problem will be solved by itself. No specific treatment is required.
As for the pathological causes of the development of foot hyperhidrosis, among them the following can be noted:
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Psychogenic foot hyperhidrosis. Sweating increases as a result of exposure to stressful situations on the body, or against the background of a strong emotional shock. Moreover, after eliminating the influencing factor, hyperhidrosis does not go away, but only subsides a little. With the onset of the next episode of emotional excitement, sweating intensifies again. The danger is represented by neuroses, asthenia, insomnia, etc.
- Idiopathic hyperhidrosis, which is characterized by increased sweating of the feet, palms, armpits. This form of hyperhidrosis is due to increased excitability of the sympathetic part of the nervous system. Most often, this type of hyperhidrosis is inherited and can be traced in blood relatives. Pathology manifests itself in early childhood, intensifies in puberty. As the body ages, the symptoms of hyperhidrosis become less pronounced.
- Endocrine hyperhidrosis, which develops against the background of pathology of the endocrine glands. If hyperhidrosis is a consequence of diabetes mellitus, obesity, hyperthyroidism and other disorders in the functioning of the endocrine glands, then not only the feet, but also other parts of the body (back, face, palms, armpits) will sweat.
- Diseases of the heart and blood vessels during an exacerbation can lead to increased sweating of the feet.
- Hyperhidrosis of the lower extremities can become a symptom of cancer, infectious processes occurring in the body. Moreover, we are talking not only about colds, but also about more serious pathologies, for example, about syphilis, tuberculosis, hepatitis, HIV infection.
Diagnostics
Diagnosis of foot hyperhidrosis is not difficult. It is much more difficult to determine the reason why this violation of thermoregulation occurs. A visit to the doctor's office begins with a patient interview. The doctor must find out how long a person has been worried about this problem, whether any other family member suffers from hyperhidrosis. To identify the cause of hyperhidrosis, the following tests are required:
- Donation of blood for general and biochemical analysis.
- Donating blood for thyroid hormones.
- Donating blood for hepatitis, HIV, latent genital infections.
- Blood donation to determine the level of glucose in the blood.
- Delivery of urine for general analysis.
Based on the results of these studies, it will be possible to assume the nature of hyperhidrosis and prescribe a quality treatment to a person. It may be necessary to consult narrow specialists (endocrinologist, neurologist, psychotherapist, etc.).
If all indicators are within normal limits, then this indicates the idiopathic nature of foot hyperhidrosis.
Treatment of foot hyperhidrosis
Treatment of foot hyperhidrosis depends on what exactly caused the increased sweating. If the trigger is a disease (tuberculosis, hyperthyroidism, diabetes mellitus, etc.), then all efforts should be directed towards its elimination.
Treatment of foot hyperhidrosis is reduced to the implementation of the following recommendations:
- Applying Teymurov's paste to the feet. It is applied to clean and dry skin of the legs with a thick layer. This will allow you to forget about sweating and unpleasant odors for up to 7 days.
- Use of zinc ointment. This drug helps to normalize the work of the sweat glands. The ointment allows you to cope with mild foot hyperhidrosis. Apply the product to clean skin of the legs three times a day for a month.
- Using an alcohol solution of Formidron. It is an effective remedy for reducing foot sweating and getting rid of unpleasant odors. A single use of the drug will allow you to achieve an effect for up to 2 weeks.
- Subcutaneous injection of Botox or Dysport injections. The procedure is carried out in a beauty parlor. A certain dose of the drug is injected into the subcutaneous tissue in the area of the sweat glands, which helps to stop their functioning. The effect lasts for 6 months. Then the processing will need to be repeated.
- A physiological procedure such as iontophoresis has a good effect. The feet are exposed to electrical impulses, which allows the drugs dissolved in water to penetrate deeper into the skin and provide a healing effect. This procedure reduces sweating for 1 to 3 months.
- Medical correction can be aimed at stabilizing the functioning of the nervous system. The doctor may prescribe drugs such as: Amitriptyline, Belloid, Clonazepam, etc.
- The use of deodorants and antiperspirants allows for a short period of time to reduce the sweating of the feet and get rid of the smell of sweat. Their validity varies from several hours to several days. It can be such means as: DEO control, spray "42", antiperspirant "Maxim", "Dry Dry", "Klima" 15%. Before using them, you should consult your doctor.
- You can use natural powders for the feet, including starch, talcum powder, baby powder. These substances absorb excess moisture and reduce sweat odor.
At home, you can make herbal baths. Allows you to reduce sweating of the feet and muffle the unpleasant smell of decoction of oak bark, willow bark, sage, chamomile. To provide an antiseptic effect, you can use a solution of soda or potassium permanganate.
If conservative methods of treatment do not help get rid of sweating of the legs, then they resort to surgery. This procedure is called sympathectomy. During the operation, the sympathetic nerve trunks, which are located in the lumbar region, are clamped. The fibers of the nerve tissue are destroyed, so the signal about the need for sweating will no longer be transmitted. It should be noted that this procedure is associated with the risk of complications. In particular, the body may start looking for alternative pathways for perspiration, so hyperhidrosis may occur elsewhere.
Gymnastics with foot hyperhidrosis
Gymnastics with foot hyperhidrosis is one of the methods of dealing with pathology at home. Its action is aimed at enhancing blood circulation in the lower extremities, which will make it possible to normalize the work of the sweat glands.
To achieve a positive effect, you need to perform the following exercises (10 times each):
- Walking barefoot on the outer and inner surfaces of the foot, on the toes.
- Scrolling the feet clockwise and counterclockwise.
- Rolling the ball with your toes from a sitting position.
- Gripping a flat object such as a pencil with your toes.
- Squats on the right and on the left leg.
Gymnastics does not take more than 10 minutes a day, but the effect of it can exceed all expectations.
Prevention
In order to prevent the development of foot hyperhidrosis, one should adhere to the following recommendations:
- Socks, knee-highs and tights must be sewn exclusively from natural fabrics. They are better breathable and absorb moisture.
- Shoes should be chosen from breathable materials. In summer, open shoes should be preferred.
- You should wash your feet with warm water at least 2 times a day. It is possible to reduce sweating by taking contrasting baths.
- It is imperative to fight flat feet. Healthy legs are less susceptible to various diseases.
- Baths and lotions with decoctions of medicinal herbs allow you to stop the growth of bacteria and fungi, and therefore get rid of the unpleasant odor.
- Chronic and acute diseases that can lead to hyperhidrosis should be treated promptly.
- The stability of the nervous system and a calm psychological background prevents the development of psychogenic hyperhidrosis.
The author of the article: Kuzmina Vera Valerievna | Endocrinologist, nutritionist
Education: Diploma of the Russian State Medical University named after NI Pirogov with a degree in General Medicine (2004). Residency at Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry, diploma in Endocrinology (2006).
