Can chilled skin stop a hot flash in its tracks?

NCT ID NCT07824648

Symptom relief Sponsor: SRI International Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

First seen Sep 17, 2026 · Last updated Sep 18, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

Researchers at SRI International are studying whether cooling the skin can reduce hot flashes in women going through menopause. The trial enrolls 40 women aged 40 to 65 who are in the menopausal transition or past menopause. Participants receive targeted cooling to the skin when a hot flash starts, room cooling, or a room-temperature control, while skin sensors count their hot flashes.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance: Targeted skin cooling during a hot flash, compared with room cooling and a room-temperature control
What this could lead to: If cooling helps, it could offer women a drug-free way to blunt hot flashes as they happen.
What could go wrong: This is a small physiology study of 40 women, so any benefit may be modest or may not hold for everyone. Cooling treats the flush, not the underlying hormonal shift.

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Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 40 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

May 2026

Expected to finish

Sep 2027

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

A company

The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

40 to 65 years

Sex

Female participants only

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Female * Age range: 40 to 65 years and in menopausal transition or post-menopause; * At least 8 years of education to ensure adequate reading proficiency; * Primary language is English or Spanish. Exclusion Criteria: * History of medical or neurological illness or trauma that would affect the central nervous system (e.g., stroke, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy); * Current severe medical conditions (e.g. Diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, renal or hepatic disease, thyroid disorders); * History of schizophrenia and/or bipolar disorder; * Dependence or abuse of illicit substances in the past year; * Current use of hormone therapy or other treatments for hot flash symptoms

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As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Menopause hot flashes

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

The places running it

1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
The official record

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Can chilled skin stop a hot flash in its tracks?

What the study statuses mean