ABSTRACT
Hot flushes of varying severity are common in women leading up to and during their menopause. Hot flushes are episodes of redness of the skin together with a sensation of warmth or burning moving down the body from the face, scalp, and neck, and less frequently, the upper trunk and abdomen. A hot flush is associated with an increase in core body temperature and pulse rate. Gustatory flushing associated with the consumption of alcohol, hot beverages, and spicy or sour foods. A diagnostic approach to hot flushes should be similar to how one would assess a patient’s experience of pain. Whether the flushing is patchy or confluent in distribution will help to distinguish the symptoms of menopausal hot flushing from other dermatological causes such as dermatitis. Cardio-respiratory symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest pain, and hypertension and gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea, as well as other symptoms.
