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General FAQ's
If you suffer from excessive sweating, you probably
have questions about hyperhidrosis, its treatments,
and its effects.
To help, we had our experts answer some of the most
frequently asked questions about hyperhidrosis. Here
are their responses:
My problem is embarrassing facial flushing, is there anything I can do about it?
What type of doctor should I see for hyperhidrosis treatment?
I would like to participate in hyperhidrosis clinical trials. How can I get involved?
I heard about people getting sick from injections of “fake” Botox. How do I know I’m getting the real thing?
My daughter is afraid to go to school or spend time with her friends because of hyperhidrosis. What can I do?
I’m not sure whether my health insurance covers hyperhidrosis treatments. How can I find out?
How can I get my health insurance plan to cover the cost of my hyperhidrosis treatments?
Can you give me more information about ETS (endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy) surgery for hyperhidrosis and how to find a surgeon?
How can I get a copy of your educational booklet?
My problem is embarrassing facial flushing, is there anything I can do about it?
A number of our visitors have asked about treatments for distressing blushing and face redness. Facial flushing, blushing, or redness can be associated with excessive sweating, or hyperhidrosis. But experts indicate it's much more common for blushing and redness to be related to another, separate condition. For instance, women experiencing menopause may experience facial flushing. Or, flushing may be a symptom of an anxiety disorder. And commonly, the skin condition rosacea can cause facial redness. (For more information about rosacea, visit the National Rosacea Society at www.rosacea.org).
Because flushing can either be a condition unto itself or related to a separate medical condition, it is very important that you talk to a physician about your problem so that he or she can determine the reason for the flushing and the appropriate treatment. Possible treatments may include lifestyle changes or prescription oral medications (such as beta blockers).
A number of different types of physicians may treat facial flushing, including your primary care physician and/or a dermatologist. Either of these physicians may also refer you to another specialist, such as a mental health expert, depending upon what they believe may be causing your facial flushing. If you experience flushing, blushing, or facial redness, don't suffer in silence. Talk to a healthcare professional. Help may be available.
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What type of doctor should I see for hyperhidrosis treatment?
As you search for a physician, please keep a few things in mind. First, every physician and patient is different so there is no one answer that fits everyone’s needs. That said, we do have a few ideas for you.
First, use our hyperhidrosis-focused Physician Finder database to find a physician in your area who is familiar with hyperhidrosis. If you don’t find a nearby physician right away, please be patient. We are working feverishly to educate health care providers about the latest treatments for excessive sweating and after every educational event more and more physicians register with us. So, check back often, new physicians are joining the Physician Finder all the time.
Our second recommendation is to talk to a dermatologist. In our experience, dermatologists tend to be among the most informed about hyperhidrosis. If the first dermatologist you talk to is not familiar with excessive sweating and the latest treatment options, kindly ask him or her for a referral to someone else who might be better able to help you. You may also refer any physicians you come in contact with to this Web site, www.SweatHelp.org. We have extensive information available for health care providers and also offer educational courses.
There are other types of doctors who treat hyperhidrosis, including primary care physicians, family practitioners, internists, neurologists, and surgeons.
Before you consult a surgeon, however, please know that there are serious risks and side effects associated with ETS surgery and it is considered a treatment of last resort. There are other treatments, like botulinum toxin type A injections and iontophoresis that are highly effective and that should certainly be tried first. For more information, visit our Hyperhidrosis Treatments area.
Additional information about the different types of doctors who treat hyperhidrosis, visit our Choosing Your Doctor page in the Getting Help section of this site.
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I would like to participate in hyperhidrosis clinical trials. How can I get involved?
If you are interested in participating in hyperhidrosis-related research or studies, please visit our Clinical Trials page on this site. You can find the page from the link on our homepage or at this URL: www.sweathelp.org/English/PFF_Hyperhidrosis_ClinicalTrials_Main.asp
Whenever opportunities arise for our members to participate in meaningful, relevant research we publish the necessary details. Currently, there are several clinical trails recruiting patients nationwide. Among these are studies treating teens with Botox injections and a study looking into hyperhidrosis' potential genetic link.
If you suffer from hyperhidrosis, or if hyperhidrosis seems to "run" in your family, by participating in a clinical trial you may be able to help improve treatment advances and increase the medical understanding of excessive sweating. And often when you participate in a clinical trial you may even be able to receive hyperhidrosis treatments FREE of charge.
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I heard about people getting sick from injections of “fake” Botox. How do I know I’m getting the real thing?
The hyperhidrosis treatment BOTOX (see the Injections page in our Hyperhidrosis Treatments section) has long been known as a temporary cosmetic solution to facial wrinkles. BOTOX is also a promising new option for the treatment of hyperhidrosis. But whether you are seeking help for wrinkles or excessive sweating – events in the news are a reminder to “accept no imitations.” BOTOX, manufactured by Allergan, Inc. of Irvine California, is the only botulinum toxin product that is FDA-approved and U.S. licensed.
According to the New York Times, because of BOTOX’s popularity, particularly for cosmetic uses, there is a growing underground market for do-it-yourself or illegally imported anti-aging compounds that are supposed to do what BOTOX does, at a fraction of the cost. The problem is that these compounds have not been approved for use in the United States and may not be safe. A 2004 case of four people hospitalized with potential botulism poisoning after receiving wrinkle treatment injections from a former osteopath in Southern Florida emphasizes the dangers of unlicensed and unregulated cosmetic practices. Included among the four ill were the doctor himself, his assistant, and two clients.
According to experts interviewed for the New York Times, it is “next to impossible to contract a case of botulism poisoning from BOTOX.” The Allergan product BOTOX has been studied clinically for 20 years and has been FDA-approved for use in the United States for 15 years. Over 1 million patients worldwide with conditions caused by certain neurological disorders have been helped by BOTOX.
Allergan takes the issue of unlicensed drugs and the potential danger they pose to the public health very seriously. BOTOX, says the company, is a medical product that is subject to extraordinarily rigorous quality control and quality assurance processes that are overseen by regulatory authorities. The company has in place a number of measures to deter the sale or distribution of unlicensed alternatives to BOTOX. For instance, Allergan uses easy-to-identify holographic film on the BOTOX vials which physicians can use to determine receipt of authentic product. The company also has a sophisticated system in place for tracking the shipment of each BOTOX vial sold.
To ensure that they are receiving the real thing, patients seeking treatment with BOTOX are advised to use common sense when choosing a physician and to research his or her credentials and training. And, says a spokesperson for Allergan, patients should always verify with their physicians that they are receiving BOTOX and not an unlicensed botulinum toxin. Licensed products available in the U.S. can be verified by checking the FDA’s web site at www.fda.gov. Physicians and consumers with questions may also call 1-800-433-8871 to speak to an Allergan representative.
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My daughter is afraid to go to school or spend time with her friends because of hyperhidrosis. What can I do?
Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon for hyperhidrosis patients to experience anxiety, depression, or social isolation in reaction to the embarrassment, discomfort, and disability caused by excessive sweating. The most important things you can do for a loved one who is experiencing these by-products of hyperhidrosis is to learn as much as you can about excessive sweating, understand the severity of the condition and its effects on daily life, provide emotional support, and encourage him or her to seek effective treatment. For more ideas on how to help, read our Special Message to Employers, Family & Friends in our About Hyperhidrosis area.
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I’m not sure whether my health insurance covers hyperhidrosis treatments. How can I find out?
Sometimes, the cost of hyperhidrosis treatment can be an obstacle. But it doesn’t have to be. The first step is finding out what your health insurance plan typically covers and what it doesn’t. To help you get started, we’ve published a list of links to major U.S. health insurance organizations’ public Hyperhidrosis Coverage Policies. You'll find these links in our Insurance Tools area.
If you do not see yours listed, either the organization does not make its policies public OR we could not locate it. If you know where to find your health insurance organization’s hyperhidrosis policy (or policies), we would love to add the information to our list. Just send the appropriate URL to us at info@SweatHelp.org.
Don’t panic if your plan doesn’t seem to cover your treatments. You do have recourse. Enlist the help of your physician and petition for coverage. Talk to your doctor about submitting a Letter of Medical Necessity (download a sample letter from our Insurance Tools area) to your insurance company. And, if you’re looking for coverage for BOTOX treatments, in particular, check out the information we have about BOTOX Insurance Help, again in our Insurance Tools area.
You’ll find a step-by-step guide to these and other related topics in the Insurance Tools section on this site.
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How can I get my health insurance plan to cover the cost of my hyperhidrosis treatments?
We fully support your efforts to gain fair coverage for hyperhidrosis treatments. This is a very important issue and one that we are working feverishly on. If you have not already done so, visit our Insurance Tools area for some tips on navigating the health insurance environment and info and tools to help you effectively plead your case.
As you may already know, health insurance organizations may not routinely cover some treatments for hyperhidrosis and they may require documentation of medical necessity before deciding to pay for certain treatments. The“Letter of Medical Necessity" we provide in our Insurance Tools area is a sample letter that physicians can adapt for their own use when providing documentation of a patient’s need for a particular therapy.
The Hyperhidrosis Preauthorization Request Form (again, in our Insurance Tools area) may be used to notify an insurance organization that a patient has been diagnosed with hyperhidrosis and to demonstrate the degree to which the patient’s life is negatively affected by excessive sweating. There is also space on the form for the physician to note treatments that the patient has already tried and the next treatment that the physician is recommending.
The Medical Insurance Claim Statement Form (see Insurance Tools) can be used to help ease the process of obtaining reimbursement from a U.S. health insurance organization for the purchase of a home-use iontophoresis machine (for the treatment of sweaty hands or feet) from the U.S. manufacturer R.A. Fischer Company (www.rafischer.com).
If you are seeking reimbursement for treatment with BOTOX specifically, you may find help through Allergan's BOTOX Reimbursement Hotline. You can reach the hotline, toll-free in the U.S., by calling (800) 530-6680 or faxing (877) 530-6680. You may also send an e-mail to Botox.Reimbursement@covance.com .
Finally, you may want to consider participating in a clinical trial. Patients enrolled in clinical trials often receive treatments free of charge. To learn more about these types of medical research studies, how they work, and to see a list of studies currently recruiting patients click on the link on our homepage or visit this URL: www.sweathelp.org/English/PFF_Hyperhidrosis_ClinicalTrials_Main.asp
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Can you give me more information about ETS (endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy) surgery for hyperhidrosis and how to find a surgeon?
We often receive questions about ETS (endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy) surgery for excessive sweating and we certainly hope we can help you to make an informed decision.
If you haven’t already done so, please visit the Hyperhidrosis Treatments pages on this site. By reading the information on our Hyperhidrosis Treatments pages, you can better understand the different treatments available as well as their benefits and risks. In general, ETS surgery is considered a treatment of last resort for hyperhidrosis because it carries serious risks and side effects that are irreversible. There are other treatments, such as BOTOX injections and iontophoresis, that are highly effective and believed to be safer and that should be tried first, before surgery.
Before you make any decisions regarding surgery we recommend that you talk to a couple different types of doctors about their recommendations for you. Please consider talking to a dermatologist. In our experience, dermatologists tend to be among the most well-informed about hyperhidrosis and the current treatment options. Mention your thoughts about surgery and see what he or she has to say about it. The more information you have, the better choice you’ll be able to make.
For more information about the different types of doctors who treat hyperhidrosis, visit Choosing Your Doctor in our Getting Help area.
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How can I get a copy of your educational booklet?
Hyperhidrosis sufferers and other interested parties may request two free copies of the education booklet by e-mailing us at info@SweatHelp.org. Please indicate whether you would like to receive your booklets in Spanish, English, or Italian, or if you would like our special Canadian brochure. Save one copy for your personal use and perhaps share the second copy with your healthcare provider. Some shipping charges may apply to international orders.
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