The Impact of bilateral endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy on hyperhidrosis patients’ quality of life and its link to psychiatric disorders

Abstract

Background and Aims: To measure the Quality of Life (QOL) of patients with hyperhidrosis after undergoing Bilateral en¬doscopic thoracic sympathectomy (BETS), and its association with psychiatric disorders, that were diagnosed using MINI psychiatric interview, and compensatory hyperhidrosis (CH). Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was carried out on patients with primary hyperhidrosis after undergoing BETS. 50 Patients were recruited from King Saud University Medical City database and contacted via phone calls. The interview contained a hyperhidrosis-specific QOL questionnaire, and a diagnostic psychiatric questionnaire MINI. The QOL results were classified into 5 categories and used to study QOL and its associated factors. Results: The reported QOL before the operation has 52% of the patients showing negative QOL. Alternately, the reported QOL after the operation improved with 96% patients showing positive QOL. Among this sample, 76% reported suffering from CH post procedure, 28% were diagnosed with one or more mood disorders, and 20% were diagnosed with one or more anxiety disorders. No statistical relationship was found linking the QOL of the sample to the occurrence of CH or the presence of any common psychiatric disorder. Conclusions: In conclusion, there was a significant improvement in the patients’ QOL after BETS. The improvement in QOL was unaffected by the surgeries most notable complication, compensatory hyperhidro¬sis, or the presence of any common psychiatric disorder that they were diagnosed with post-surgery. Further research is needed to explore factors that may affect the QOL of these patients.