HOT FLASHES, HOT FLUSHES, NIGHT SWEATS, SLEEP - Acupuncture, Chinese Medicine
Topic: Acupuncture May Reduce Severity and Frequency of Nocturnal Hot Flashes in Postmenopausal Women
Mary I. Huang, M.S., Yael Nir, M.D., Bertha Chen, M.D., Rosa Schnyer, L.Ac., and Rachel Manber, Ph.D., Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, and the Osher Institute, Harvard University School of Medicine, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and New England School of Acupuncture, Watertown, Massachusetts.
Fertility and Sterility, Volume 86, No. 3, September 2006. Reference: “A randomized controlled pilot study of acupuncture for postmenopausal hot flashes: effect on nocturnal hot flashes and sleep quality,” Huang MI, Yael N, et al, Fertil Steril., 2006; 86(3): 700-10. (Address: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA).

Summary: In a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled study involving 29 postmenopausal women experiencing 7 or more moderate to severe hot flashes daily, treatment with acupuncture was effective at significantly reducing the severity of nocturnal hot flashes. The women – with E2 < 18 pg/mL and FSH 30-110 IU/L – received either 9 sessions of active or placebo acupuncture over 7 weeks. Women receiving the active acupuncture treatment experienced a 28% reduction in nocturnal hot-flash severity, compared to a 6% reduction in women receiving the placebo treatment. Additionally, the frequency of nocturnal hot flashes decreased by 47% and 24% in the active and placebo treatment groups, respectively. Although, no significant difference was observed between the two treatments on sleep, significant correlations were found between improvements in sleep – based on Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores – and reductions in frequency and severity of nocturnal hot flashes. Thus, this study suggests that treatment with acupuncture may be effective at reducing the severity and frequency of nocturnal hot flashes in postmenopausal women. Further studies exploring the effects of acupuncture on sleep quality are warranted.