METHODS: The medical records and clinical outcomes of 35 patients who underwent endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy for primary hyperhidrosis from 2008 to 2018 in Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery were reviewed.
RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 27±10.1years, with male and female distribution of 18 and 17, respectively. Fifty-one percent of patients complained of palmar hyperhidrosis, while 35% of them had concurrent palmaraxillary and 14% had palmar-plantar-axillary hyperhidrosis. Our data showed that 77% (n=27) of patients were not investigated for secondary causes of hyperhidrosis, and they were not counselled on the non-surgical therapies. All patients underwent single-staged bilateral endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy. There was resolution of symptoms in all 35 (100%) patients with palmar hyperhidrosis, 13(76%) patients with axillary hyperhidrosis and only 2 (50%) patients with plantar hyperhidrosis. Postoperatively 34.3% (n=12) of patients reported compensatory hyperhidrosis. There were no other complications such as pneumothorax, chylothorax, haemothorax and Horner's Syndrome.
CONCLUSION: Clinical evaluation of hyperhidrosis in local context has not been well described, which may inadvertently result in the delay of appropriate management, causing significant social and emotional embarrassment and impair the quality of life of the subjects. Detailed clinical assessment and appropriate timely treatment, be it surgical or non-surgical therapies, are crucial in managing this uncommon yet distressing disease.
METHODS: Medical records of all paediatric patients presenting with symptom of stridor from January 2010 to February 2015 were reviewed retrospectively. The patients' demographic data, clinical notes, laryngoscope findings, diagnosis and management were retrieved and analysed.
RESULTS: Out of the total 137 patients referred for noisy breathing, 121 patients had stridor and were included in this study. There were 73 males and 48 females-most were of Malay ethnicity (77.7%). The age of presentation ranged from newborn to 10 years, with a mean of 4.9 months. Eighteen patients (14.9%) had associated congenital pathologies. The majority were congenital causes (90.9%), in which laryngomalacia was the commonest (78.5%), followed by subglottic stenosis (5.0%), vallecular cyst (2.5%) and congenital vocal fold paralysis (2.5%). Twelve patients (9.9%) had synchronous airway lesion. The majority of the patients were managed conservatively. Thirty-one patients (25.6%) required surgical intervention, of which only one needed tracheostomy.
CONCLUSION: Laryngomalacia was the commonest cause of stridor among paediatric patients. A synchronous airway lesion should be considered if the child has persistent or severe symptoms. The majority of the patients were managed conservatively.