Sleep hyperhidrosis
Encyclopedia
Sleep hyperhidrosis, more commonly known as the night sweats, is the occurrence of excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis
) during sleep
. The sufferer may or may not also suffer from excessive perspiration while awake.
Sleep hyperhidrosis may occur at any age, but is most commonly seen in early adult
hood.
Night sweats may occur for genetic
reasons and may be relatively harmless. However, they can be distressing and disrupt sleep patterns if severe; the patient may be frequently awakened due to the discomfort of damp sleepwear or bedding.
One of the most common causes of night sweats in women over 40 is the hormonal changes related to menopause
and perimenopause. This is a very common occurrence during the menopause transition years and while annoying, it is not necessarily dangerous or a sign of underlying disease. Some women experience night sweats during pregnancy
due to hormonal changes.
While some causes of night sweats may be relatively harmless, others may not and can be a sign of a serious underlying disease. While there can be several possible causes of excessive sweating at night, it is important to distinguish night sweats due to medical causes from those that occur simply because the sleep environment is too warm, either because the bedroom is unusually hot or because there are too many covers on the bed. A night sweat caused by a medical condition or infection can be described as ‘severe hot flashes occurring at night that can drench sleepwear and sheets, which are not related to an overheated environment’. Some of the underlying medical conditions and infections that cause these severe night sweats can be life-threatening and should promptly be investigated by a medical practitioner.
There are many ways to help relieve night sweats. By keeping a cool glass of water on the night stand and wearing moisture-wicking pajamas, many people suffering from night sweats have found relief.
states, including:
Certain medications, anti-depressants (such as sertraline
) have also been known to cause night sweats in some individuals. Another cause could be withdrawal from various drugs (opiates, benzodiazepines, alcohol
, etc.).
Hyperhidrosis
Hyperhidrosis is the condition characterized by abnormally increased perspiration, in excess of that required for regulation of body temperature.-Classification:Hyperhidrosis can either be generalized or localized to specific parts of the body...
) during sleep
Sleep
Sleep is a naturally recurring state characterized by reduced or absent consciousness, relatively suspended sensory activity, and inactivity of nearly all voluntary muscles. It is distinguished from quiet wakefulness by a decreased ability to react to stimuli, and is more easily reversible than...
. The sufferer may or may not also suffer from excessive perspiration while awake.
Sleep hyperhidrosis may occur at any age, but is most commonly seen in early adult
Adult
An adult is a human being or living organism that is of relatively mature age, typically associated with sexual maturity and the attainment of reproductive age....
hood.
Night sweats may occur for genetic
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
reasons and may be relatively harmless. However, they can be distressing and disrupt sleep patterns if severe; the patient may be frequently awakened due to the discomfort of damp sleepwear or bedding.
One of the most common causes of night sweats in women over 40 is the hormonal changes related to menopause
Menopause
Menopause is a term used to describe the permanent cessation of the primary functions of the human ovaries: the ripening and release of ova and the release of hormones that cause both the creation of the uterine lining and the subsequent shedding of the uterine lining...
and perimenopause. This is a very common occurrence during the menopause transition years and while annoying, it is not necessarily dangerous or a sign of underlying disease. Some women experience night sweats during pregnancy
Pregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
due to hormonal changes.
While some causes of night sweats may be relatively harmless, others may not and can be a sign of a serious underlying disease. While there can be several possible causes of excessive sweating at night, it is important to distinguish night sweats due to medical causes from those that occur simply because the sleep environment is too warm, either because the bedroom is unusually hot or because there are too many covers on the bed. A night sweat caused by a medical condition or infection can be described as ‘severe hot flashes occurring at night that can drench sleepwear and sheets, which are not related to an overheated environment’. Some of the underlying medical conditions and infections that cause these severe night sweats can be life-threatening and should promptly be investigated by a medical practitioner.
There are many ways to help relieve night sweats. By keeping a cool glass of water on the night stand and wearing moisture-wicking pajamas, many people suffering from night sweats have found relief.
Associated conditions
The condition may be a sign of various diseaseDisease
A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...
states, including:
- Acrodynia (childhood mercury poisoning)
- Anorexia NervosaAnorexia nervosaAnorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by refusal to maintain a healthy body weight and an obsessive fear of gaining weight. Although commonly called "anorexia", that term on its own denotes any symptomatic loss of appetite and is not strictly accurate...
(in-patient treatment starts it & edema) - BrucellosisBrucellosisBrucellosis, also called Bang's disease, Crimean fever, Gibraltar fever, Malta fever, Maltese fever, Mediterranean fever, rock fever, or undulant fever, is a highly contagious zoonosis caused by ingestion of unsterilized milk or meat from infected animals or close contact with their secretions...
- LeukemiaLeukemiaLeukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
or LymphomaLymphomaLymphoma is a cancer in the lymphatic cells of the immune system. Typically, lymphomas present as a solid tumor of lymphoid cells. Treatment might involve chemotherapy and in some cases radiotherapy and/or bone marrow transplantation, and can be curable depending on the histology, type, and stage... - Cerebral palsyCerebral palsyCerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
- CerebralTelencephalonThe cerebrum or telencephalon, together with the diencephalon, constitutes the forebrain. The cerebrum is the most anterior region of the vertebrate central nervous system. Telencephalon refers to the embryonic structure, from which the mature cerebrum develops...
and brain stemBrain stemIn vertebrate anatomy the brainstem is the posterior part of the brain, adjoining and structurally continuous with the spinal cord. The brain stem provides the main motor and sensory innervation to the face and neck via the cranial nerves...
strokeStrokeA stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
s - EpilepsyEpilepsyEpilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...
- Familial dysautonomiaFamilial dysautonomiaFamilial dysautonomia is a disorder of the autonomic nervous system which affects the development and survival of sensory, sympathetic and some parasympathetic neurons in the autonomic and sensory nervous system resulting in variable symptoms including: insensitivity to pain, inability to produce...
- FibromyalgiaFibromyalgiaFibromyalgia is a medical disorder characterized by chronic widespread pain and allodynia, a heightened and painful response to pressure. It is an example of a diagnosis of exclusion...
- Gastroesophageal Reflux DiseaseGastroesophageal reflux diseaseGastroesophageal reflux disease , gastro-oesophageal reflux disease , gastric reflux disease, or acid reflux disease is chronic symptoms or mucosal damage caused by stomach acid coming up from the stomach into the esophagus...
- Head injuryHead injuryHead injury refers to trauma of the head. This may or may not include injury to the brain. However, the terms traumatic brain injury and head injury are often used interchangeably in medical literature....
- HIVHIVHuman immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
- Hypoglycaemia (Chromium deficiencyChromium deficiencyChromium deficiency is a disorder that results from an insufficient dietary intake of chromium. Whether or not such a deficiency ever occurs in people eating a normal diet is debated, and clear cases of deficiency have only been observed in hospital patients who were fed defined liquid diets...
) - HypothalamicHypothalamusThe Hypothalamus is a portion of the brain that contains a number of small nuclei with a variety of functions...
lesions - Infectious MononucleosisInfectious mononucleosisInfectious mononucleosis is an infectious, widespread viral...
- InfluenzaInfluenzaInfluenza, commonly referred to as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by RNA viruses of the family Orthomyxoviridae , that affects birds and mammals...
- LymphomaLymphomaLymphoma is a cancer in the lymphatic cells of the immune system. Typically, lymphomas present as a solid tumor of lymphoid cells. Treatment might involve chemotherapy and in some cases radiotherapy and/or bone marrow transplantation, and can be curable depending on the histology, type, and stage...
- MenopauseMenopauseMenopause is a term used to describe the permanent cessation of the primary functions of the human ovaries: the ripening and release of ova and the release of hormones that cause both the creation of the uterine lining and the subsequent shedding of the uterine lining...
- Obstructive Sleep ApneaObstructive sleep apneaObstructive sleep apnea or obstructive sleep apnea syndrome is the most common type of sleep apnea and is caused by obstruction of the upper airway. It is characterized by repetitive pauses in breathing during sleep, despite the effort to breathe, and is usually associated with a reduction in...
- Posttraumatic stress disorder
- PneumoniaPneumoniaPneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
- Pulmonary histoplasmosisHistoplasmosisHistoplasmosis is a disease caused by the fungus Histoplasma capsulatum. Symptoms of this infection vary greatly, but the disease primarily affects the lungs...
- SarcoidosisSarcoidosisSarcoidosis , also called sarcoid, Besnier-Boeck disease or Besnier-Boeck-Schaumann disease, is a disease in which abnormal collections of chronic inflammatory cells form as nodules in multiple organs. The cause of sarcoidosis is unknown...
- Subacute endocarditisSubacute endocarditisSubacute bacterial endocarditis is a type of endocarditis .It can be confused with essential mixed cryoglobulinemia.It can be considered a form of Type III hypersensitivity....
- TuberculosisTuberculosisTuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
- Chronic Fatigue SyndromeChronic fatigue syndromeChronic fatigue syndrome is the most common name used to designate a significantly debilitating medical disorder or group of disorders generally defined by persistent fatigue accompanied by other specific symptoms for a minimum of six months, not due to ongoing exertion, not substantially...
- Lyme DiseaseLyme diseaseLyme disease, or Lyme borreliosis, is an emerging infectious disease caused by at least three species of bacteria belonging to the genus Borrelia. Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto is the main cause of Lyme disease in the United States, whereas Borrelia afzelii and Borrelia garinii cause most...
- Urinary tract infectionUrinary tract infectionA urinary tract infection is a bacterial infection that affects any part of the urinary tract. Symptoms include frequent feeling and/or need to urinate, pain during urination, and cloudy urine. The main causal agent is Escherichia coli...
Certain medications, anti-depressants (such as sertraline
Sertraline
Sertraline hydrochloride is an antidepressant of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor class. It was introduced to the market by Pfizer in 1991. Sertraline is primarily used to treat major depression in adult outpatients as well as obsessive–compulsive, panic, and social anxiety disorders in...
) have also been known to cause night sweats in some individuals. Another cause could be withdrawal from various drugs (opiates, benzodiazepines, alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
, etc.).