Quality of life and social isolation in Greek adolescents with primary focal hyperhidrosis treated with botulinum toxin type A: a case series.

Primary hyperhidrosis, although extensively documented in adults, typically has onset that dates back to early childhood. It is an unpleasant and socially disabling problem for the affected child, but little attention has been paid to the disease in adolescents. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness of botulinum toxin type A (BTXA) in adolescents with primary palmar and axillary hyperhidrosis and to determine its effect on quality of life and social isolation. Thirty-five individuals (17 girls, 18 boys) with moderate to severe palmar and axillary hyperhidrosis were treated with BTXA (onabotulinum). Patients were examined at baseline and 6 months after treatment. The Hyperhidrosis Disease Severity Scale (HDSS) was used to evaluate disease severity and the Children's Dermatology Life Quality Index (CDLQI) was used to assess quality of life. The University of California at Los Angeles loneliness scale (UCLA version 3) was used to assess personal perception of loneliness and social isolation. The median age of the participants was 14 years, and 48.6% were female. Twenty-one had palmar hyperhidrosis, and 14 had axillary hyperhidrosis. Total CDLQI and social isolation scores decreased significantly after treatment with BTXA (both p < 0.001). There was a significant difference between pre- and post-treatment levels of severity of hyperhidrosis. No statistically significant difference was documented for CDLQI and UCLA scores between boys and girls. Treatment of hyperhidrosis with BTXA resulted in improvement in quality of life, social skills, and activities.

Quality of Life in Patients with Focal Hyperhidrosis before and after Treatment with Botulinum Toxin A.

The aim of this study is to assess the effectiveness of treatment with BTX-A in quality of life of patients suffering from primary focal hyperhidrosis. Materials and Methods. A total of 119 patients (62 females and 57 males) between 18 and 65 years suffering from moderate to severe focal hyperhidrosis were treated with BTX-A. Thirty-nine patients suffered from axillary hyperhidrosis, 47 patients from palmar hyperhidrosis, 12 patients from plantar hyperhidrosis, and 21 patients from palmar and plantar hyperhidrosis. A baseline and posttreated examination of patients 6 months after BTX-A is included. The Hyperhidrosis Disease Severity Scale (HDSS) was chosen to assess the disease severity and the modified Dermatology Life Quality Index was used (DLQI) to assess the quality of life. Results. Quality of life showed a significant improvement after treatment with BTX-A. The total DLQI score resulted significantly lower than the basal value (P < 0.0001). The seriousness of hyperhidrosis significantly decreased after the treatment (P < 0.0001). In addition, there was notable difference between the posttreatment DLQI scores and pretreatment severity of hyperhidrosis by sex. Conclusions. Treatment with BTX-A led to the reduction of disease severity and improvement of quality of life, while it is a safe, easy to use method with minimal side effects.