Strategies to prevent postoperative nausea and vomiting

Abstract

Nausea and vomiting seen within the post-operative recovery room or 24 hours following the operation remain one of the most common complications in the postoperative period. Nausea and vomiting decrease the patient's postoperative satisfaction, which may lead to complications, such as aspiration of gastric contents, dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, hemorrhage, it may also bring about economic losses, prolongs recovery time and length of hospital stay. Therefore, in the preoperative process, it is very important to investigate the risks correctly for each patient concerning postoperative nausea and vomiting and to identify and apply risk-reducing pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment methods. In this review, the importance of postoperative nausea and vomiting, risk factors, strategies to reduce risks and the treatment algorithm used in prophylaxis are presented. © 2020, Turkish Society for Radiation Oncology.