Key Points
- Veozah, the non-hormonal medication for hot flashes, may ease symptoms of anxiety and depression, too.
- The exact reasoning behind this is unclear, but doctors have a few theories.
- This discovery may “support a more comprehensive approach to menopause care,” according to one doctor.
It feels like there’s never been a better time to go through menopause, thanks to new treatment options and growing research in this space. You may have heard about Veozah, the FDA-approved non-hormonal prescription pill that can help ease hot flashes and night sweats. As it turns out, Veozah may do even more than originally advertised.
While data show that Veozah can lower the number and severity of hot flashes, new data suggests the drug was also linked to improved symptoms of depression and anxiety, too.
A study on Veozah called OPTION-VMS found that the drug was linked to statistically significant improvements in anxiety and depression symptoms, suggesting this medication may have benefits that extend beyond hot flash relief. Here’s what menopause experts want you to know.
Meet the experts: Mary Jane Minkin, MD, a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology and reproductive sciences at Yale School of Medicine and founder of Madame Ovary; Lauren Streicher, MD, a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and host of Dr. Streicher’s Inside Information: Menopause, Midlife, and More podcast; Jessica Shepherd, MD, author of Generation M: Living Well in Perimenopause and Menopause
What did the study find?
The OPTION-VMS study is ongoing, but preliminary results were recently presented at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting. For the observational study, researchers followed 656 women between the ages of 40 and 75 with hot flashes who were prescribed medications like fezolinetant (Veozah), common antidepressants like SSRIs or SNRIs, the anticonvulsant medication gabapentin, and oxybutynin—all of which are currently used or have been used in the past to treat hot flashes.
Participants were assessed for changes in their hot flash symptoms over 12 weeks, along with check-ins at four, eight, and 12 weeks on symptoms of depression and anxiety.
They found that women who used Veozah reported statistically significant improvements in their hot flash symptoms over the study period and during check-ins. But they also saw statistically significant improvements in depression and anxiety symptoms as early as four weeks after taking Veozah through 12 weeks. (It’s also worth noting that people who took SSRIs or SNRIs and other non-hormone therapies saw improvements in their symptoms of anxiety and depression.)
Why might Veozah help with anxiety and depression?
There could be a few things happening here. One is that the women may have gotten better sleep on this medication. “Veozah can certainly help by substantially decreasing hot flashes and allowing women better sleep, which promotes a much better sense of well-being,” says Mary Jane Minkin, MD, a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology and reproductive sciences at Yale School of Medicine, and founder of Madame Ovary.
There could also be something about the mechanism of the drug that’s helpful, too, says Jessica Shepherd, MD, author of Generation M: Living Well in Perimenopause and Menopause. “Veozah works by blocking neurokinin 3 (NK3) receptors in the brain, helping regulate the temperature control center responsible for hot flashes,” she says. Because hot flashes are closely linked with stress and a worse quality of life, reducing hot flashes may also help improve a person’s mood and anxiety, she says.
“The million-dollar question is whether this is because Veozah helps with hot flashes, or if this is happening independent of this drug,” says Lauren Streicher, MD, a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and host of Dr. Streicher’s Inside Information: Menopause, Midlife, and More podcast. Dr. Streicher points out that the researchers didn’t include women who had anxiety and depression but not hot flashes—therefore, it’s hard to parse out what it is about the medication that’s helping.
What does this suggest for future treatment?
It’s not clear at this point. For women in perimenopause or menopause with a new onset of anxiety and depression who don’t previously have a history of such symptoms, this new research could be useful in the future, Dr. Streicher says. But, she cautions that the takeaway isn’t that Veozah will necessarily help someone with mood symptoms who doesn’t have hot flashes.
The findings “support a more comprehensive approach to menopause care,” says Dr. Shepherd. “Rather than treating hot flashes, sleep, and mood as separate issues, future therapies may address the interconnected brain pathways that contribute to multiple menopausal symptoms.”
Still, Dr. Shepherd stresses that Veozah should be considered an additional therapy to evidence-based treatments like antidepressants or talk therapy—not a replacement.
