MiraDry Sweat Reduction is a non-invasive, FDA approved technology which reduces underarm sweat through the use of an electromagnetic energy source to target the sweat glands. During the procedure, the doctor uses local anesthesia to numb the area to be treated and then places a temporary tattoo with square diagrams on the skin to mark the area. The doctor places the treatment device on each of the treatment squares so the energy waves move through the skin and dermis to hit the fat and bounce back. The energy waves collide with each other, creating heat at the fat and dermal junction. This destroys the eccrine and apocrine sweat glands as well as the hair follicles within the dermis. The skin itself remains undamaged because it is simultaneously being cooled through the device.
Am I A Candidate for MiraDry Sweat Reduction?
The ideal candidate for MiraDry Sweat Reduction is anyone who suffers from excess sweat or odor in the underarm area that comes from eccrine glands that cause wetness and apocrine glands causes bacteria that creates odors. People who can greatly benefit from this procedure includes firemen, military personnel, and police officers due to the fact that they must wear heavy uniforms in the heat.
Botox has also been used in sweat reduction treatment but it is only effective on eccrine glands and the results will not be as great if both sweat glands are not treated. A patient also needs to be treated twice per year with Botox to maintain the results at $1,000 per treatment, or $2000 total. MiraDry typically requires one treatment in a lifetime and the cost is between $2,000–$2,500.
MiraDry is also good for patients who want to reduce their amount of underarm hair. Although it can benefit patients of various hair colors, it is most useful on patients with light colored hair. For a woman with light hair, it might take two or three treatments to remove all the underarm hair. In general, this procedure is ideal for a woman looking to have less sweat, less odor and less hair.
Recovery and Downtime of MiraDry Sweat Reduction
The procedure is really a minor one so most patients can drive themselves home after their appointment. Although the downtime and recovery is minimal with this procedure, everyone heals in their own way. Some patients may require a little more recovery while others are playing golf two days later. Either way, a patient should expect some swelling and soreness for two or three weeks. Over the counter medications can be used to treat any discomfort. Some patients may experience a little numbness around the treated area that could last up to twelve weeks.
Results of MiraDry Sweat Reduction
Since the body has no way of regenerating the glands that are destroyed during the MiraDry procedure, this procedure is permanent for around 80% of patients. The other 20% will have a significant improvement but will need to have a second procedure to gain their ideal results by taking care of the sweat glands which were left untreated. This 20% of patients will attain lasting results as well with the second procedure.
MiraDry Sweat Reduction will not make the underarm area look or feel too dry. There will still be some moisture so that the underarm feels normal to the patient. However, the dripping is alleviated and there are no sweat stains to worry about.
Limitations and Risks of MiraDry Sweat Reduction
Even though a person might suffer from sweaty hands or other sweaty areas, MiraDry Sweat Reduction is limited to the armpit area. There are too many risks of nerve damage when using MiraDry in other areas of the body due to the nerves being close to the surface of the skin.
During the earliest MiraDry Sweat Reduction procedures, only small amounts of local anesthesia were injected. This small amount caused incredibly thin patients to experience temporary nerve weakness as well as pain and discomfort. As the procedure developed and improved over time, a tumescent technique similar to the technique used during liposuction was adopted and greatly reduced the risk of pain and nerve weakness
Sweating Elsewhere in the Body
MiraDry Sweat Reduction has been used by doctors on patients in over 55,000 treatments all over the world. It’s important to note that humans are born with almost 2-million sweat glands located throughout the body. The underarm area only contains around 2% of the 2-million sweat glands in the body. Even though this procedure helps patients achieve relief by giving them dry underarms, they will continue to perspire as normally as before elsewhere in the body.
Written by Cosmetic Town Editorial Team -SP
Based in an exclusive interview with Larry Nichter, MD in Newport Beach
