

Sensitive Skin and Hyperhidrosis Links are Bigger and More Complicated than Previously Thought
New research shows an association between excessive sweating (primary hyperhidrosis or Hh) and sensitive skin, beyond sweat acting as a skin irritant.
The data comes from a study conducted by researchers from the International Hyperhidrosis Society (IHhS), The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, and Virginia Tech and published in the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology.
In medical terms, “sensitive skin” refers to skin that overreacts to otherwise innocuous stimuli, such as skincare products, stress, sweat, or heat. Symptoms of sensitive skin include itching, burning, tightness, or stinging. The problem is very common, affecting at least 40%-70% of people around the world.
In the study, 637 people with primary hyperhidrosis responded to the survey. Results, analyzed with the help of machine learning models, showed that 89% of respondents experienced sensitive skin (along with their Hh) - indicating a significant association between excessive sweating and sensitive skin. This shows that people with hyperhidrosis are potentially 11%-49% MORE LIKELY than the average person to have sensitive skin. Importantly, survey respondents reported sensitive skin symptoms on areas of the body affected by excessive sweating and also on areas NOT affected by excessive sweating - suggesting that sweat itself is not the sole cause of the sensitive skin symptoms. Sweat is, however, known to irritate skin and 20% of those surveyed indicated that sweat causes skin discomfort. This is the first known study to look at associations between extreme sweating and skin sensitivity.
The study also found that:
"These results show that someone with primary hyperhidrosis is more likely to have sensitive skin than the general public, even in body areas where there is no excessive sweating," says the lead researcher for the study, Adam Friedman, MD, Professor and Chair of Dermatology at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. “This new knowledge can help healthcare providers and patients to better identify and manage sensitive skin."
“How nerves stimulate,” says Friedman, “particularly excessive cholinergic stimulation, which is known to perpetuate hyperhidrosis, could play a role in exacerbating sensitive skin symptoms, too. If this is the case, targeting those nerves might (in the future) help us to better treat these really common and frustrating conditions,” Friedman added. “More research is needed, but this is an important step forward in our understanding of the potential neurodysfunction behind both hyperhidrosis and sensitive skin.”
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