What are the benefits and side effects of paroxetine for hot flashes?
Low-dose paroxetine is an FDA-approved, non-hormonal option for hot flashes and night sweats, usually considered when estrogen isn't a good fit. Here at Alloy, our information shows that the benefit is fairly straightforward: about 50% of women get a reduction in hot flashes and night sweats, and that often means better sleep too. For hot flashes, it’s typically used at a much lower dose than for depression, usually 10 mg, and it can start helping faster than it does when used for mood disorders, sometimes within days, with many people noticing improvement in about 2 to 4 weeks.
On side effects, the information I have here is limited, so I can’t give you a full side effect list. What we do have is that a very low-dose version used for hot flashes, 7.5 mg, was described by Dr. Mary Jane Minkin as not causing the weight gain or loss of libido that many SSRIs can cause. Two cautions are clearly noted: paroxetine should not be used with tamoxifen because it can interfere with tamoxifen metabolism, and it’s important to make sure you’re not already taking another SSRI.
It’s also worth knowing that estrogen is still the most effective treatment for hot flashes overall, but paroxetine is a proven option if you want or need a non-hormonal treatment.
For more detail, our paroxetine page and this article on paroxetine for hot flashes vs. depression are the best places to start. Dr. Mary Jane Minkin also explains low-dose paroxetine as a non-hormonal hot flash treatment in this video chapter.
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