Suvorexant may treat hot flashes insomnia in women

Hot flashes and night sweats are common causes of insomnia in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women

"Our research shows that there is a good treatment now available for chronic insomnia in adjacent and postmenopausal women that may also help reduce night sweats," said Shadab Rahman, Ph.

Current treatment options for insomnia include drugs such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and non-benzodiazepine GABA-A receptor modulators (including common "Z drugs" such as zolpidem/hypnotic)

The researchers designed their study to test suvorexant because of its well-established mechanism of action

The research team conducted a four-week trial in which 60 women between the ages of 40 and 65 were randomly assigned to receive either suvorexant or a placebo

The severity of insomnia symptoms was scored using the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI)

The authors noted that the small sample size of their study limited their ability to detect changes in other secondary sleep outcomes after adjusting for multiple tests

"This study sends an important message to middle-aged women that there are more treatments available to help them overcome insomnia

 double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial”