title: Vasomotor symptoms and menopause: findings from the Study of Women's Health across the Nation.
abstract: Vasomotor symptoms (VMS), or hot flashes and night sweats, are often considered the cardinal symptoms of menopause. SWAN, one of the largest and most ethnically diverse longitudinal studies of the menopausal transition, has allowed unique insights into VMS. Specifically, SWAN has helped yield important information about the prevalence of, racial/ethnic differences in, risk factors for, and implications of VMS for midlife women's mental and physical health. We have reviewed the literature on VMS, emphasizing findings that have emerged from SWAN and new areas of inquiry in the area of VMS.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 3811 O'Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. thurstonrc@upmc.edu
authors.forename: Rebecca C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Thurston
authors.forename: Hadine
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Joffe
mesh_terms: D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000150:complications; D001833:Body Temperature Regulation; D015519:Bone Density; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006306:Health Surveys; D019584:Hot Flashes / Q000208:ethnology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008593:Menopause / Q000502:physiology*; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications; D011788:Quality of Life; D014481:United States; D016387:Women's Health