Vasomotor symptoms, such as daytime hot flashes and nighttime awakenings due to hot flashes, are commonly associated with menopausal women. The aim of this study was to assess desvenlafaxine in moderate to severe hot flashes in postmenopausal women. Electronic databases were searched for relevant randomized controlled trials that compared desvenlafaxine to placebo for postmenopausal women affected with hot flashes. The main outcomes were mean differences (MD) or standardized mean differences (SMD) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for change of the hot flashes. Six randomized controlled trials were identified in the meta-analysis. Pooled change of moderate and severe hot flashes frequency reduced SMD of -0.49 (95% CI -0.91 to -0.07) in desvenlafaxine 100 mg and -0.36 (95% CI -0.54 to -0.19) in desvenlafaxine 150 mg at week 12. Desvenlafaxine 100 mg reduced moderate and severe hot flashes frequency SMD of -0.74 (95% CI -1.05 to -0.44) within 26 weeks. There is no evidence for an increased risk of cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, or hepatic events associated with desvenlafaxine 100 mg/day. The meta-analysis suggests that treatment with desvenlafaxine 100 mg/day is associated with a significant reduction of moderate to severe hot flashes in postmenopausal women. Desvenlafaxine appears both safe and effective for treating hot flushes for up to 12 months.

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BackgroundNearly 75% of adults may experience significant psychological distress at the time of a cancer diagnosis. These individuals should have appropriate psychological support services available to them, but the most effective ways to address their psychological distress are not yet clear. ObjectivesThe objective was to assess the effects of psychosocial interventions to improve quality of life (QoL) and general psychological distress (including anxiety and depression) in the first 12 months after a diagnosis of cancer. Intervention/MethodsThe review 1 included 30 randomized controlled trials measuring QoL and general psychological distress. In total, 5155 participants older than 18 years were included in the review. Patients included in these trials had been formally diagnosed with a different type or stage of cancer within the previous 12 months. The primary outcome, QoL, was examined in subgroups according to outcome measurement, cancer site, theoretical basis for intervention, mode of delivery, and discipline of ''trained helper.'' The secondary outcome, general psychological distress (including anxiety and depression), was examined by specified outcome measures. Results Primary OutcomeVQoLData from a meta-analysis of 9 studies (n = 1249 adult participants) showed no significant effects in improving QoL at a 6-month follow-up. The overall effect Z score was 1.88 (P = .06; standard mean difference [SMD] = 0.11; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.00Y0.22), with I 2 statistics of 0%, indicating no important heterogeneity between the trials. In contrast, there was a small improvement in QoL in 6 studies (n = 831 adult participants) when QoL was measured using cancer-specific measures. The overall effect Z score was 2.22 (P = .026; SMD = 0.16; 95% CI, 0.02Y 0.30), with I 2 statistics of 0%. In 2 studies (n = 405 adult participants), nurse-led psychosocial interventions using telephone and face-to-face delivery with breast cancer patients produced a beneficial impact on QoL .The overall effect Z score was 2.32 (P = .02; SMD = 0.23; 95% CI, 0.04Y0.43), with I 2 statistics of 0%. Secondary OutcomeVGeneral Psychological DistressEight studies assessed general psychological distress by ''mood measures.'' Data from the meta-analysis of the 8 studies (n = 683 adult participants) showed that there was improvement in general psychological distress. The overall effect Z score was 2.51 (P = .01; SMD = j0.81; 95% CI, j1.44 to j0.18). Of note, there was significant heterogeneity between the trials (I 2 = 93%). The heterogeneity was probably due to differences in sample size, patient sample characteristics, contents of the intervention, the mode of delivery, or the discipline of the trained helper, as well as the methodological quality of the different trials. But data from a meta-analysis of 6 studies (n = 1014 adult participants) indicated no significant effects when distress was assessed by measures of depression. The overall effect Z score was 1.21 (P = .23; SMD = 0.12; 95% CI, j0.07 to 0.31), with I 2 statistics of 52%, in...

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