A new therapy for excessive sweating sounds like science fiction…really BAD science fiction

Never let them see you sweat.

That’s good advice. But let’s not go overboard.

The FDA has approved a new method for treating hyperhidrosis. That’s the medical term for excessive sweating.

Until recently, Botox injection was the primary treatment. Side effects (which can be “life threatening”) include “problems swallowing, speaking, or breathing.”

Most people need to do all three of those things. That’s why Miramar Labs developed miraDry.

With miraDry, a doctor numbs the armpits with a local anesthetic. Then, in a one-hour procedure, the miraDry device uses microwaves to destroy sweat glands. Oh, and it also kills apocrine glands. They cause odor. And it damages hair follicles too.

Well…THAT sounds perfectly safe!

The miraDry website tells us… “Some localized soreness or swelling is normal, and typically clears within a few weeks.”

But one doctor puts it a little differently… “Most people have minor swelling, but in some cases it can be a lump as big as a softball.”

Yikes! And then, doctors often treat the swelling with steroids.

Again — yikes!

But here’s what I find most interesting… In a study of 120 people with hyperhidrosis, a placebo group received a sham procedure with no microwaves. And more than HALF of that group reported successful sweat reduction!

Let’s see… No microwaves. No softball-size swelling. No steroids. Hmmm… I wonder if FDA officials would consider approving the sham procedure. And why not? They certainly have plenty of experience with Big Pharma shams.

Sources:
“Too Much Sweating? Apply Heat” Laura Johannes, Wall St. Journal, 8/13/12, online.wsj.com