Sweat Test

[ken870]

how is the sweat test suppose to be like they did it on me an i sweating a lot but i thought when you sweating a lot the test was abnormal but they said mine was normal.

[Broken_Shell]

how is the sweat test suppose to be like they did it on me an i sweating a lot but i thought when you sweating a lot the test was abnormal but they said mine was normal.

Hi Ken,

The test is abnormal if you DON'T sweat. If you don't sweat, this means that your body doesn't take the correct actions to cool itself when it gets hots. Hope that helps clarify.

~ Broken_Shell

[jjb]

Hmmm ... I am wondering about this too.

Lack of sweating or too little sweating (anhidrosis or hypohidrosis) is abnormal, but so is too much sweating, or hyperhidrosis.

Does the sweat test not check for HYPERhidrosis???

I was under the impression it did.

I will have the test next Friday, so will my daughter.

My daughter does not sweat in the face and is very heat intolerant.

I am heat intolerant also but I think I sweat excessively ... enough so I need to use drysol.

[Broken_Shell]

Hi Ken and Jen,

You raise a good question. I could be wrong, but this is what I understand about the test. If you are sweating before they even put you into the heated environment, then they could diagnose you with hyperhydrosis. The test involves covering you with a dry powder that turns purple when it gets wet (i.e. if you sweat). Once you are in the heated environment, then once it turns purple it means that you are sweating, but there is no gauge of how much you are sweating. I suppose that if you sweat so much that the powder runs off and there are literally puddles of sweat around you, then they should be able to diagnose hyperhydrosis, but beyond that the sweat test is mainly subjective. This would probably be a good question to raise with your doctor before you undergo the test. Let me know what you find out... I am basically ahydriotic, but I am still curious to know the answer to this question. Good luck with the testing!

~ Broken_Shell

[jjb]

First, I am curious, why is your name broken shell?

If I think of it, I will look this up when I get home. I have a book on dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system ... they have a section on sweating, both hypo & hyper.

I THOUGHT but am not positive, they mention how they measure too much.

Ava as I mentioned does not sweat in the face, but seems to sweat excessively in the head ... you can feel it from a distance and you can also at time smell burnt hair.

Speaking of which, anyone have any thoughts of the burnt smell with sweat?

[Stace915]

what does a sweat test test for? I mean I understand that it shows if you sweat too much or too little but what do those results mean? I have hyperhydrosis and its been getting worse lately, I even sweat when I am cold. All my doctors are aware of this but I didn't know that there was a test for it and I am wondering if I should have the test and once we get the results then what do they do with that information???

I have used drysol etc but it burns my skin too badly, the dermatologist has been trying to get my health ins co to cover botox injections (I guess that stops sweat), but now this post made me wonder if the excessive sweating is a sign on something else besides autonomic dysfunction.

Thanks

[Katja]

there are two different sweat tests - the TST, and the QSART. I had the QSART - it measures the actual volume of sweat produced, but only in a few places (in my case, and I think typically, the forearm, distal/proximal leg, and foot).

[jjb]

SO will the QSART DX or r/o hyperhidrosis too?

there are two different sweat tests - the TST, and the QSART. I had the QSART - it measures the actual volume of sweat produced, but only in a few places (in my case, and I think typically, the forearm, distal/proximal leg, and foot).

but what do those results mean?

There are numerous reasons for both.

Here is an article on hyperhidrosis:

hyperhidrosis

[Katja]

SO will the QSART DX or r/o hyperhidrosis too?

not sure. I think both tests are actually used to document hyperhidrosis, from what I remember, but I can't offhand say how.

[firewatcher]

They also look at sweating patterns, whether it is all over or in patches. I have not had a sweat test done, but I know i sweat abnormally. My face, hands and feet are first and sometimes the only thing to sweat now. It takes a lot to get anything else to sweat. My Pilates/PT instructor always lets me know (and anyone nearby) when I sweat somewhere else, like my arms or back . She should just pat me on the head or toss me a cookie. I do actually feel some small sense of normalcy when I sweat in a normal pattern though, my symptoms aren't as bad. I often have very COLD sweaty hands and feet, usually in church (it's either guilt or all that standing in one place and "singing." )