Hemifacial hyperhidrosis associated with ipsilateral/contralateral cervical disc herniation myelopathy. Functional considerations on how compression pattern determines the laterality

• Published in: Functional neurology 2014-01, Vol.29 (1), p.67-73
• Main Authors: Iwase, Satoshi, Inukai, Yoko, Nishimura, Naoki, Sato, Maki, Sugenoya, Junichi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Cervical Vertebrae; Face - physiopathology; Female; Humans; Hyperhidrosis - diagnosis; Hyperhidrosis - etiology; Intervertebral Disc Displacement - complications; Intervertebral Disc Displacement - pathology; Male; Middle Aged; Spinal Cord Compression - complications; Spinal Cord Compression - pathology; Thermography
• ISSN: 0393-5264; 1971-3274; 0393-5264
• DOI: 10.11138/FNeur/2014.29.1.067

Sweating is an important mechanism for ensuring constant thermoregulation, but hyperhidrosis may be disturbing. We present five cases of hemifacial hyperhidrosis as a compensatory response to an/hypohidrosis caused by cervical disc herniation. All the patients complained of hemifacial hyperhidrosis, without anisocoria or blepharoptosis. Sweat function testing and thermography confirmed hyperhidrosis of hemifacial and adjacent areas. Neck MRI showed cervical disc herniation. Three of the patients had lateral compression with welldemarcated hypohidrosis below the hyperhidrosis on the same side as the cervical lesion. The rest had paramedian compression with poorly demarcated hyperhidrosis and hypohidrosis on the contralateral side. Although MRI showed no intraspinal pathological signal intensity, lateral dural compression might influence the circulation to the sudomotor pathway, and paramedian compression might influence the ipsilateral sulcal artery, which perfuses the sympathetic descending pathway and the intermediolateral nucleus. Sweat function testing and thermography should be performed to determine the focus of the hemifacial hyperhidrosis, and the myelopathy should be investigated on both sides.