Emotional sweating response in a patient with bilateral amygdala damage

Sweat output on the palm or sole is distinct from thermoregulatory sweating and has been designated emotional sweating. The amygdala has been implicated in this phenomenon, but the role it plays remains unclear. We had the chance to evaluate emotional sweating in a 21-year-old female with bilateral restricted amygdala lesions caused by idiopathic subacute limbic encephalitis. At the peak of the illness, sweat responses in the palm were not evoked in this patient in conjunction with any sympathetic activation procedures, including deep inspiration, mental arithmetic, isotonic exercise, and tactile stimulation. After neurological improvement associated with diminution of amygdala lesions on the magnetic resonance imaging, normal sweat responses were incited. This indicates that the amygdala does play an important role in emotional sweating. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.