What are the causes of anhidrosis?

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What are the causes of anhidrosis?

If you have anhidrosis, your sweat glands do not work properly. There are many possible causes. Some people are born with the condition, others develop it later in life.

Other known causes of anhidrosis include:

  • Skin damage from burns, radiation therapy, or pore-clogging diseases such as psoriasis.
  • Damage to the sweat glands from surgery, trauma or scar formation.
  • Nerve damage caused by diabetes, alcoholism, and Guillain-Barre syndrome.
  • Inherited disorder of the metabolic system (Fabry disease).
  • Connective tissue disorders, such as systemic sclerosis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjogren syndrome.
  • Autonomic nervous system disorders, such as Ross syndrome, and Harlequin syndrome.
  • Nerve conditions (neuropathies), such as diabetic neuropathy, paraneoplastic neuropathy, inherited neuropathy, amyloid neuropathy, lepromatous neuropathy.
  • Central nervous system diseases and conditions, including multiple system atrophy, dementia with lewy bodies, Parkinson's disease, stroke and spinal cord disease.
  • Excessive dehydration.

Many medications interfere with sweat gland function. Anticholinergic medications are the most common drug-related cause of anhidrosis. Examples of anticholinergics include glycopyrrolate (Cuvposa®, Robinul®), doxepin (Silenor®, Zonalon®), atropine (Atropen®), cyproheptadine and hyoscyamine (Levsin/SL®, Hyosyne®). Other drug classes and examples include:

  • Tricyclic antidepressants (amitriptyline).
  • Antihistamines (diphenhydramine [Benadryl®, Nytol®]).
  • Bladder antispasmodics (oxybutynin [Ditropan XL], tolterodine [Detrol®]).
  • Antipsychotics / antiemetics (chlorpromazine, clozapine [Clozaril®], quetiapine [Seroquel®]).
  • Antiepileptics (topiramate [Topamax®], zonisamide [Zonegran®]).
  • Antihypertensives (clonidine [Catapres®]).
  • Opioids (fentanyl, morphine, hydrocodone, oxycodone).
  • Neuromuscular paralytics (botulinum toxins).

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