Wrist Cooling Device Shows Promise in Managing Hot Flashes

Hot flashes, characterized by sudden and intense feelings of warmth typically accompanied by flushing and sweating, are common vasomotor symptoms affecting women during menopause, as well as men undergoing hormone deprivation therapy for prostate cancer and breast cancer patients. These episodes can severely impact quality of life, causing sleep disturbances, cognitive issues, fatigue, increased pain, and emotional stress. Up to 80% of menopausal women, 80% of prostate cancer patients, and 50-80% of breast cancer patients experience these symptoms.

Recent research from Boston University School of Medicine offers promising non-pharmacological intervention: a wristband cooling device. Unlike hormonal or pharmaceutical treatments, which often carry significant side effects or are unsuitable for hormone-sensitive individuals, this innovative device provides a safe alternative. In a randomized, double-blind study involving 27 participants with at least two daily moderate-to-severe hot flashes—including women with breast or prostate cancer and postmenopausal women—participants used the cooling wristband or a non-cooling placebo band over several weeks.

Results showed a substantial 46% reduction in severe hot flash episodes among users of the cooling device. Specifically, breast cancer patients experienced a 41% decrease, while prostate cancer patients and postmenopausal women saw reductions of 50%. Additionally, there was an 18% drop in the overall number of daily hot flashes. The high neurological sensitivity of the wrist makes it an ideal site for targeted cooling therapy, which appears to signal the body's hypothalamus to reduce overheating responses like vasodilation and sweating. This mechanism potentially mitigates the intensity and frequency of hot flashes.

Dr. Michael F. Holick, lead researcher and professor of medicine, emphasized that the device could be especially beneficial for patients who cannot use hormone-based treatments due to cancer or other health concerns. The findings, published in the journal AACE Endocrinology and Diabetes, suggest that wrist cooling devices may become an effective tool in managing vasomotor symptoms and improving patient quality of life.

This breakthrough underscores the potential for wearable cooling technologies not only in hot flash management but also in other conditions involving thermoregulatory dysfunction such as motion sickness, Parkinson’s disease, and hand tremors. Further studies are needed to optimize these devices and expand their applications, but the current evidence highlights a promising step forward in non-invasive symptom relief.

source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-09-wrist-cooling-approach-hot.html