Dr. Freeman and her colleagues reported that to their knowledge, their clinical trial is the first to examine whether racial differences exist in response to SSRI treatment for hot flashes. Previous studies have shown that African American women are more likely to report hot flashes than their white counterparts.
However, Dr. Freeman found that “race did not significantly affect the response to escitalopram in the present study.”
Additional studies are needed to compare the efficacy of SSRIs and selective serotonin norepinephrine inhibitors in treating hot flashes related to menopause, they reported.
Significant improvement in hot flash frequency and severity was shown within 1 week of starting escitalopram.
Source DR. FREEMAN