Determinants of hot flashes and night sweats

Sievert, Lynnette Leidy; Obermeyer, Carla Makhlouf; Price, Kim

doi:10.1080/03014460500421338

Cited by 51 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…These results go against what has been reported from other studies [3,4,[8][9][10]14,15]. Nevertheless, this absence of a relation has been reported previously [30].…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 57%

“…Although intake of alcohol [3,11,12,14,16] and hot beverages [12], physical exercise [1,10,11,14,15], body mass index (BMI) [4,12,14,[18][19][20] and smoking [1,3,8,12,17] have been considered predictors of vasomotor symptoms, the vast majority of lifestyle factors in the present study had no causal associations with the perceived severity of these symptoms.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 54%

“…Although around 70% of women report vasomotor symptoms [2], only a few consider them bothersome: in one study just 9% considered hot flashes (HF) to be bothersome, while 6% described night sweats (NS) as troublesome [3]. These same two sets of symptoms are considered problematic by 12-20% of women [2,4].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, alcohol [3,11,12,14,16], smoking [1,3,8,12,17], physical exercise [1,10,11,14,15], body mass index (BMI) [4,12,14,[18][19][20] and educational level [3] have all been reported to predict either an increase or a significant decrease in the reporting of vasomotor symptoms. Some factors may have an impact on both (HF and NS) or on only one symptom.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unsurprisingly, health-and menopause-related variables have been reported to have an effect on vasomotor symptoms: the use hormonal therapy decreases their bothersomeness [6,7]; having a good health status diminishes both their frequency and the associated distress [3]; and less medical help-seeking is associated with less frequent and less severe symptoms [8][9][10]. Furthermore, despite the physiological nature of these symptoms, it has been shown that socio-demographic and lifestyle factors have an impact: low caffeine intake predicts a lower symptom severity [11,12]; high perceived control is related to lower frequency and distress [13]; a higher educational level predicts lower prevalence and severity [4,8,14,15]; and not being divorced is associated with a lower rating of how bothersome these symptoms are reported to be [8].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Perceived control, lifestyle, health, socio-demographic factors and menopause: Impact on hot flashes and night sweats

Pimenta¹,

Leal²,

Marôco³

et al. 2011

Maturitas

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a b s t r a c tObjective: To develop a model to predict the perceived severity of hot flashes (HF) and night sweats (NS) in symptomatic middle-aged women.Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of a community-based sample of 243 women with vasomotor symptoms. Menopausal status was ascertained using the 'Stages of Reproductive Aging Workshop' criteria. Women's 'perceived control' over their symptoms was measured by a validated Portuguese version of the Perceived Control over Hot Flushes Index. Structural equation modelling was employed to construct a causal model of self-reported severity of both HF and NS, using a set of 20 variables: age, marital status, parity, professional status, educational level, family annual income, recent diseases and psychological problems, medical help-seeking behaviour to manage menopausal symptoms, use of hormone therapy and herbal/soy products, menopause status, intake of alcohol, coffee and hot beverages, smoking, physical exercise, body mass index and perceived control. Results: Significant predictors of perceived severity were the use of hormone therapy for both HF (ˇ = −.245; p = .022) and NS (ˇ = −.298; p = .008), coffee intake for both HF (ˇ = −.234; p = .039) and NS (ˇ = −.258; p = .029) and perceived control for both HF (ˇ = −1.0; p < .001) and NS (ˇ = −1.0; p < .001). The variables explained respectively 67% and 72% of the variability in the perceived severity of HF and NS. Women with high perceived control had a significantly lower frequency (t(235) = 2.022; p = .044) and intensity of HF (t(217) = 3.582; p < .001); similarly, participants with high perceived control presented a lower frequency (t(235) = 3.267; p < .001) and intensity (t(210) = 3.376; p < .001) of NS. Conclusion: Perceived control was the strongest predictor of the self-reported severity of both HF and NS. Other causal predictors were hormone therapy and caffeine intake. All three were associated with less severe vasomotor symptoms.

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“…These results go against what has been reported from other studies [3,4,[8][9][10]14,15]. Nevertheless, this absence of a relation has been reported previously [30].…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 57%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 54%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Perceived control, lifestyle, health, socio-demographic factors and menopause: Impact on hot flashes and night sweats

Pimenta¹,

Leal²,

Marôco³

et al. 2011

Maturitas

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show abstract

Patterns of occurrence and concordance between subjective and objective hot flashes among Muslim and Hindu women in Sylhet, Bangladesh

Sievert

Begum

Sharmeen

et al. 2008

American J Hum Biol

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This study examined the pattern of occurrence and the rate of concordance between objective hot flashes measured by sternal skin conductance and the subjective experience of "gorom vap laga" (feeling steaming hot) among Muslim and Hindu women living in Sylhet, Bangladesh. Participants were aged 40-55, not pregnant or lactating, not using hormone therapy, and with no history of hysterectomy. Thirty women wore an ambulatory hot flash monitor for 8 h on average, from mid-morning to early evening. True positive, false negative, and false positive measures of hot flashes were examined in relation to demographic, reproductive, and lifestyle variables. On body diagrams, women were most likely to indicate hot flashes on the top of their head (64%) and upper chest (68%). The greatest number of objective hot flashes occurred during the hour of 17:00, perhaps due to the heat of the day, and the clothing and activity associated with prayer. Muslim participants demonstrated more objective hot flashes per woman than Hindu participants (1.5 vs. 0.1, P < 0.05), and Muslims had more false positive measures (86%) compared with Hindu participants (0%, P = 0.06). Among all women who reported subjective hot flashes (n = 19), the proportion of true positive scores was 19%. Overall, the frequency of objective hot flashes was low compared with reports from studies in the United States. The pattern of sweating assessed by body diagrams was not associated with variation in hot flash experience.

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Subjective and objective measures of hot flashes

Sievert¹

2013

American J Hum Biol

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Up to 75% of women in the US report having experienced hot flashes during the menopausal transition. The purpose of this review is to describe the physiology of hot flashes, and the ways in which hot flashes have been examined by subjective report and by objective measurement. Hot flashes occur because of an activation of the heat dissipation response, possibly triggered by a hypothalamic mechanism within the context of declining estrogen levels. There is cross-population variation in the frequency of self-reported hot flashes, although cross-study comparisons are problematic because of incompatibilities in study design. Diaries are a good way to collect information on the time and severity of hot flashes, and body diagrams allow researchers to study the pattern of heat and sweating. Hot flashes can be objectively measured by increases in heart rate, finger blood flow, respiratory exchange ratio, skin temperature, and core body temperature. Sternal skin conductance is the method most highly correlated with subjective hot flash report. In a laboratory, concordance between subjective report and sternal skin conductance can approach 100%. Ambulatory monitoring allows for the tracking of hot flashes during a woman's daily routine or sleep; however, concordance is much lower with ambulatory, compared to laboratory, monitoring. The study of hot flashes at menopause provides a model for the study of any experience that can be assessed by both self-report and biometric measurement.

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Determinants of hot flashes and night sweats

Abstract: In logistic regression analyses, alcohol consumption was a significant predictor of vasomotor symptoms. A slightly different set of variables were associated with hot flashes compared to night sweats.

Cited by 51 publications

References 42 publications

Perceived control, lifestyle, health, socio-demographic factors and menopause: Impact on hot flashes and night sweats

Perceived control, lifestyle, health, socio-demographic factors and menopause: Impact on hot flashes and night sweats

Patterns of occurrence and concordance between subjective and objective hot flashes among Muslim and Hindu women in Sylhet, Bangladesh

Subjective and objective measures of hot flashes

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