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Dr Gérald Kierzek (Medical Director of Doctissimo)
Hot flashes are a characteristic and well-known symptom of menopause, certainly, but not only that! Dr. Gérald Kierzek, medical director of Doctissimo, discusses these other conditions and pathologies that can cause them.
They are called hot flashes, or even flushes in the medical field. This sudden feeling of heat that invades the face and neck, and which can be unpleasant, is the result of a dilation of the small blood vessels, which causes an increase in the temperature of the skin. The hot flash as we know it impacts many women, particularly during menopause. But deducing that hot flashes indicate menopause would be a bit simplistic. Other medical reasons can cause this phenomenon, as Dr Gérald Kierzek, emergency physician and medical director of Doctissimo, explains to us.
A hormonal change involved
Menopause remains the most common reason for hot flashes, linked to hormonal variations. “Therefore, anything that can cause hormonal changes can also come into play and cause this feeling” says Dr. Kierzek. Pregnancy or even menstrual periods can therefore be sources of hot flashes. “It can also be an imbalance from thyroid treatment for example”he maintains.
A neuroendocrine tumor
Another less known cause, always linked to hormones, tumors called neuroendocrine tumors can also give this heat effect. According to the Gustave Roussy center, neuroendocrine tumors constitute a group of tumors, likely to arise anywhere in the body and characterized by their capacity to secrete hormones in approximately 30% of cases. It is this hormone secretion that could cause these flushes.
“We then see hot flashes in the case of so-called digestive neuroendocrine tumors but also in what we call pheochromocytoma – a tumor which generally originates in the cells of the adrenal glands” specifies our expert. Here again, it is the fact that the tumor secretes hormones that causes hot flashes.
Some treatments
Another cause of these hot flashes can come from the treatment taken by the patient, which is then called iatrogenic medications. “These are the side effects of drugs, with hormones, such as in breast cancer, but also drugs against high blood pressure, or certain antidepressants. explains our expert.
Other known causes too
Finally, the “hot flash” effect can be induced by other situations, such as drinking alcohol, smoking, a diet that is too spicy, an environment that is simply too hot, or even a stressful situation.
For our doctor, this diversity of causes, in particular the possibility of a neuroendocrine tumor, must invite us to consult. “It’s not a question of panicking as soon as you feel a hot flash, but if the flashes are sudden and disabling, you should consult your doctor. Blood tests using a simple blood test make it possible to check the cause. he concludes.