Research suggests that hot flashes can be harmful to the heart

Around 70% of women are thought to have hot flashes at some point throughout the menopause transition. These hot flashes have long been recognised as having an impact on women's quality of life and mental health, but now mounting evidence connects them to an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. Concerns regarding the connection between hot flashes and heart health will be highlighted in a presentation at The North American Menopause Society (NAMS) Annual Meeting in Atlanta, October 12-15. 

The risk increases in midlife during the menopause transition, when cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality in women. Evidence associating hot flashes and the risk of heart disease has been found in large epidemiologic cohort studies, clinical investigations utilising physiologic measures of vasomotor symptoms, and other studies. In particular, women who experience hot flashes more frequently have worsening profiles of cardiovascular risk factors, including hypertension (or raised blood pressure), insulin resistance (or diabetes), dyslipidemia, and a higher chance of underlying atherosclerosis. 

As women age, having more frequent hot flashes has also been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease-related events such as myocardial infarction and stroke. More recent studies have connected vasomotor symptoms to markers of small artery disease in the brain as well as other measures of brain health.

The presentation, which will examine potential underlying physiological mechanisms that could connect vasomotor symptoms to cardiovascular risk as well as the clinical consequences of this work, will be led by Dr Rebecca Thurston from the University of Pittsburgh. "Hot flashes are considered to be symptoms that can affect one's quality of life, but not always their physical condition. 

Increasing evidence suggests that frequent or severe hot flashes may indicate women who are at an elevated risk of cardiovascular illness at midlife and beyond, contradicting this long-held conventional wisdom, according to Dr Thurston. 

According to Dr Faubion, medical director of NAMS, "this presentation will highlight the most recent thinking regarding how women with a high burden of vasomotor symptoms may particularly benefit from targeted cardiovascular reduction initiatives as they age."