Mechanism
The term 'compensatory' is largely misleading, as it indicates that there is a compensatory mechanism that takes effect after sympathectomy, in which the body 'redirects' the sweating from the palms or face to other areas of the body. Sweating after sympathetic surgery is a reflex cycle between the sympathetic system and the anterior portion of the hypothalamus. Reflex sweating will not happen if hand sweating can be stopped without interrupting sympathetic tone to the human brain.
Compensatory hyperhidrois is aberrant sympathetic nervous system functioning. The only study evaluating the total body sweat prior and shortly after sympathectomy concluded that patients produce more sweat after the surgery, just not so much in the areas treated by the surgery.
Read more about this topic: Compensatory Hyperhidrosis
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