Hyperhidrosis Treatment Toronto
Botox® for Excessive Sweating
Hyperhidrosis is excessive sweating that is not related to heat or exercise. Excess sweating under the arms (axillae) can be embarrassing. It can also ruin your favorite clothes or force you to wear layers to cover up. For people affected by hyperhidrosis, Botox injections can significantly decrease sweat production, leading to improved confidence, comfort, and quality of life.
How is Botox Used to Treat Hyperhidrosis?
Injection of Botox into the skin under the arms (axillae) significantly reduces the amount of sweat produced in 80-90% of people treated. When you have hyperhidrosis, the nerves that tell your sweat glands to activate are constantly triggering. Botox injections block those nerves from sending any signals. The activation message that those nerves would typically transmit to your sweat glands never gets delivered. As a result, your sweat glands are able to switch off.
Botox as a hyperhidrosis treatment works for the vast majority of patients, presenting an effective, and relatively non-invasive, solution.
Our Comprehensive Approach to Botox
The first step in treatment of axillary hyperhidrosis is consultation with one of our board-certified dermatologists. Once the diagnosis of axillary hyperhidrosis has been confirmed, treatment options will be discussed. If Botox is determined to be the best treatment option for you, it can often be administered on the day of your initial consultation.
Currently, Botox is only approved for use in the treatment of hyperhidrosis under the arms, known as severe primary axillary hyperhidrosis. However, it is often effective in the treatment of hyperhidrosis of the palms and forehead as well.
The treatment consists of about one dozen superficial injections into each axilla. Once the injections are completed, you’ll be able to resume your normal activities immediately. You will notice decreased sweating within 3-5 days, with peak effect by 2 weeks.
No Surgery
Treatment involves strategically placed injections and doesn't involve any surgery.
Results in Days
For most people, a reduction in sweat production occurs within a few days of treatment. Optimal results are seen at about 2 weeks.
Improvement That Lasts for Months
Results last anywhere from 4-12 months and touchups can be performed to maintain the improvement.
Who is a Candidate for Botox Hyperhidrosis Treatment?
You’re likely a good candidate for Botox treatment of your axillary hyperhidrosis if you:
- Experience uncontrolled excess sweating of the underarms (axillae).
- Are not able to mitigate your hyperhidrosis with topical antiperspirants.
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How Botox Works for Hyperhidrosis: The Mechanism Explained
Hyperhidrosis is a medical condition characterized by sweating that exceeds the body's normal thermoregulatory needs. There are two types.
Primary hyperhidrosis happens without another health issue; it's often inherited and starts in childhood, causing overactive nerves to make sweat.
Secondary hyperhidrosis can stem from conditions such as diabetes or certain medications, resulting in excessive sweating throughout the body.
Sweat starts when special nerves called sympathetic nerves get activated. This happens if your body gets too hot or you're stressed. These nerves release acetylcholine, a chemical that jumps across a small gap to reach the sweat gland. It sticks to spots on the gland, telling it to make sweat. The sweat comes out on your skin and evaporates, cooling you down.
In hyperhidrosis, this pathway operates in overdrive. The sympathetic nerves fire excessively, causing sweat glands to activate constantly, regardless of whether you need to cool down or not.
When Botox is injected into the skin, it is absorbed by the targeted nerves, where it blocks the release of acetylcholine. So, while the nerves may try to send signals to the glands to produce sweat, these signals are unable to reach their destination. It's like disconnecting the phone line between the nerve and the gland. However, your body continues to sweat normally everywhere except where the Botox was injected.
Without receiving acetylcholine signals, the eccrine sweat glands stop producing sweat. The glands remain healthy and functional; they simply no longer receive the activation message. Over time (typically 4 to 12 months), the nerve endings regenerate, new nerve terminals form, and acetylcholine release gradually resumes. As neuromuscular communication is restored, sweating gradually returns, necessitating repeat treatment.
The specificity of Botox action explains why precise injection technique matters. Our board-certified dermatologists map the affected area and distribute injections evenly throughout, ensuring comprehensive coverage while avoiding unnecessary treatment of unaffected zones.
Botox Hyperhidrosis Treatment FAQ
Does Botox for hyperhidrosis work?
Studies have shown that most patients experience a significant decrease in sweating after Botox treatment.
What is the difference between normal sweating and hyperhidrosis?
Can hyperhidrosis be cured permanently?
How common is hyperhidrosis?
How long does Botox for hyperhidrosis take to work?
It takes about 2-4 days for Botox to start working, with optimal results by 2 weeks.
Is Botox for hyperhidrosis painful?
What can a dermatologist do for sweating?
Does treating underarm sweating with Botox cause sweating elsewhere?
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650 Mount Pleasant Rd #8
Toronto, ON M4S 2N5, Canada
Phone: 647-351-9277
Fax: 647-351-9077
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