Night Sweats »
Introduction
Doctors in primary care fields
of medicine often hear their patients complain of night
sweats. Night sweats refer to any excess sweating occurring
during the night. However, if your bedroom is unusually hot or you are using too
many bedclothes, you may begin to sweat during sleep - and this is normal. In order to distinguish
night sweats that arise from medical causes from those that occur because one's
surroundings are too warm, doctors generally refer to true night sweats as
severe hot flashes occurring at night that can drench sleepwear and sheets, which are
not related to an overheated environment.
In one study of 2267 patients visiting a primary care physician, 41% reported
experiencing night sweats during the previous month, so the perception of
excessive sweating at night is fairly common. It is important to note that
flushing (a warmth and redness of the face or trunk) may also be hard to
distinguish from true night swe...
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