USA Today (1/17, Painter) reports that “when…things don’t work, and when women are miserable (not everyone is), most doctors will offer a prescription” and “the first choice – except for women with a history of breast cancer or other health conflicts – is still hormone therapy (estrogen, often combined with progestin).” According to Michelle Warren, medical director of the women’s health center at Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, “it reduces hot flashes by about 90% and ‘it’s actually very safe, but that’s not getting across to the public.'”
“In a review published recently in the journal Climacteric by the International Menopause Society, the Times notes that “the report is bluntly dismissive of non-prescription remedies, saying: ‘Substantial funding from the National Institutes of Health and other non-pharmaceutical sources has failed to show any benefit of over-the-counter therapies compared to placebo for (hot flashes), and the safety of these compounds is not confirmed.'”
Blogfinger medical commentary: By Paul Goldfinger, MD, FACC.
I have two vivid memories from the first day on my med school rotation in ob-gyn. The first is how to properly put on rubber gloves. The second is that you don’t say “hot flash.” You do say, “Hot flush.” But judging from this article, common usage has won the battle of menopausal lingo.
For years physicians were urging women who were menopausal to take estrogen supplements (usually with progesterone) to relieve the hot flashes but also to prevent heart disease. But the tables were turned nearly ten years ago. This segment is from our book “Prevention Does Work: A Guide to a Healthy Heart,” Fourth Edition 2011.
“Although many older trials had suggested that hormone replacement therapy (HRT) with estrogens, after the menopause, would reduce the risk of coronary heart disease by one half, (New England Journal 325:756, 1991), recent data has dramatically changed the guidelines.”
“The Women’s Health Initiative is a huge randomized trial which, in 2003, reported that the use of HRT increased the number of cardiovascular events. Subsequent results in the trial demonstrated that the issue is quite complex. Although doctors no longer prescribe HRT for most postmenopausal women, the use of estrogens seems to be protective in younger postmenopausal women and might still be used in selected patients. (HRT and the Young at Heart, NEJM 356:2639, June 21, 2007). This matter must be discussed with your physician.”
Aside from the complicated situation described above , one thing has never changed: estrogen therapy is the most effective treatment for hot flashes. The quote in the article says that now it (estrogen therapy) is “actually very safe.” I freely admit that I am not an expert on this, but if you are suffering with hot flashes due to the menopause then at least ask your ob-gyn for the latest information.