Hot flushes and night sweats in midlife: Why do some women have them and others do not?

This study investigated what predicts the occurrence of hot flushes (HF) and night sweats (NS). A community sample of 992 women (42-60 years) answered a questionnaire to collect socio-demographic, health and menopause-related, as well as lifestyle information. Depressive mood and stress, as well as HF and NS (in terms of presence, frequency and intensity), were also assessed. Structural equation modelling was used to build a structural model to predict the occurrence of both vasomotor symptoms. Results: Stress predicted NS (β =.154; p =.006), whereas depressive mood was linked to the occurrence of HF's (β =.149; p =.006). Being peri-menopausal and post-menopausal, among several other characteristics, were also significant predictors of the occurrence of both HF and NS. This study supports a distinguished influence of stress and depressive mood in NS and HF respectively, probably due to the nature of psychological symptoms. Moreover, significant associations between vasomotor symptoms and socio-demographic, health and menopause-related characteristics, and alcohol were confirmed.