Acupuncture Helps with Hot Flashes

Acupuncture has been shown before to be effective in reducing hot flashes in menopausal women.  This was the reason that Henry Ford Hospital researchers decided to examine its use in breast cancer patients who develop hot flashes from their anti-estrogen hormone treatment.  They published their findings in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. 

Fifty patients were recruited from the oncology clinic at Henry Ford Hospital.  They were randomly assigned to take either acupuncture or venlafaxine (Effexor®, the usual drug of choice for hot flashes in breast cancer treatment). 

The acupuncture was given twice a week for the first 4 weeks, and then once a week for the remaining 8 weeks.  Venlafaxine patients were given the drug orally each night: 37,5 mg for the first week and then 75 mg for the remaining 11 weeks.  After 12 weeks, all patients stopped treatment and were followed for one year.  Patient diaries recorded their hot flashes, and surveys covered their general and mental health.

Both treatment groups initially had a 50% reduction in the number of their hot flashes and depressive symptoms.  However, after the first 2 weeks’ treatment the acupuncture group hot flashes were at low levels, whereas in the venlafaxine patients there was a significant increase in hot flashes.  The acupuncture subjects failed to develop an increase in their hot flashes until 3 months after treatment.  Venalfaxine was accompanied by adverse effects in 18 of the 25 patients – nausea, dry mouth, dizziness, anxiety – while acupuncture produced no adverse effects.  Sex drive and energy were reportedly increased in the acupuncture patients.

It’s always gratifying to be able to publicize an adequate and well-controlled study that shows the efficacy and safety of acupuncture in a well-defined group of patients.  The fact that acupuncture “beat” the standard medical treatment of the condition is a good indication that the effect is much more than that of a placebo.