A new drug shows promise for hot flashes due to menopause
Up to 80 percent of women experience hot flashes at some point during the menopausal transition. A new nonhormonal drug to treat these symptoms performed well in clinical trials. Dmitrii Marchenko/Moment/Getty Images Plus Share this: A new treatment for hot flashes brought relief and a better night’s rest for women experiencing these disruptive symptoms during menopause. Two phase 3 clinical trials compared the drug elinzanetant with a placebo at two timepoints. The drug subdued hot flashes quickly: By the fourth week, a majority of those taking the drug reported at least a 50 percent reduction in frequency. By week 12, more than 70 percent taking elinzanetant , compared with more than 40 percent on placebo, experienced that drop in hot flash frequency, researchers reported August 22 in the Journal of the American Medical Association . Participants on elinzanetant also reported significantly improved sleep compared with those on placebo at the 12-week mark. “Elinzanetant is a promisi