Efficacy of videothoracoscopic sympathectomy for palmo-axillary hyperhidrosis: Quality of Life Change and patient satisfaction

INTRODUCTION: Primary hyperhidrosis is a condition of excessive sweating that severely limits a person's social life. We aimed to investigate factors affecting the quality of life and patient satisfaction in patients undergoing videothoracoscopic sympathectomy for palmo-axillary hyperhidrosis. METHODS: We evaluated 126 patients who underwent videothoracoscopic sympathectomy for primary palmo-axillary hyperhidrosis. The data were analyzed retrospectively in terms of postoperative complications and factors affecting the quality of life. RESULTS: A total of 251 videothoracoscopic sympathectomy operations were performed, 53.2% (n:67) of the patients were female and 46.8% (n:59) were male. The mean age was 24.3±7 (min-max:15-51), whereas the mean body mass index was 23.5±4 (min-max:16.9-34.9). The mean length of hospital stay was 1.3±0.9 days (Min-Max: 1-6). Complications were observed in a total of 13 (10.3%) patients. The most common complication was pneumothorax (n:10). Compensatory hyperhidrosis was observed in 23 patients (18.3%). A significant correlation was detected between compensatory hyperhidrosis and patient satisfaction (p