hot flashes

Peri-menopausal and postmenopausal women who took the antidepressant medication escitalopram – brand name Lexapro® – experienced a reduction in the frequency and severity of hot flashes as compared to women who received placebo according to a new study led by the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. The study was published in the January 19th issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

“Our findings suggest that among healthy women who were not depressed or anxious, a 10 to 20 milligram dose of escitalopram – which is well below the dosage level for psychiatric use – provides a nonhormonal, off-label option that is effective and well-tolerated in the management of menopausal hot flashes,” said Ellen W. Freeman, PhD, Penn research professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and principal investigator of the national, multi-site study. [continue reading…]