Sauer T, Tottenham LS, Ethier A, et al. - Alterations of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) stress axis have been hypothesized to play a role in the observed correlation between vasomotor symptoms (VMS) and a poorer cardiovascular risk profile. Researchers here investigated the within- and between-individual relationship between VMS and cortisol in a sample of 101 perimenopausal women, ages 45 to 55 years. Per findings, there are alterations in HPA axis activity among women who suffer from more severe and bothersome perimenopausal VMS. However, within an individual, there appeared no correlation of short-term changes in VMS with concurrent changes in HPA axis functioning.