Bilateral single-port thoracoscopic sympathectomy with the VasoView (R) device in the treatment of palmar and axillary hyperhidrosis

Primary or essential hyperhidrosis is a disorder characterized by excessive sweating beyond physiological needs. It is a common disease (with an incidence of up to 2.8%) that causes intense discomfort for patients. Video-assisted thoracoscopic bilateral sympathectomy is an effective surgical treatment with high success rates and improvement in quality of life. In the last decade, the advantages of a single-port thoracoscopic approach have become clear. Problems with intraoperative bleeding management have been solved by using thoracoscopes with integrated electrocautery scissors. In this report, we describe successful transaxillary bilateral single-port thoracoscopic T2-T5 sympathectomy with the VasoView (R) device in three patients with palmar and axillary hyperhidrosis. The VasoView (R) device, with its integrated electrocautery scissors, was originally designed for endoscopic vessel harvesting in coronary artery bypass surgery, but it has proven highly effective for single-port thoracoscopic sympathectomy. (C) 2011 Published by European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. All rights reserved.