TITLE:
A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing the Efficacy of P6 Acupuncture Plus Ondansetron versus Ondansetron or P6 Acupuncture in the Prevention of Nausea and Vomiting after Bupivacaine-Morphine Spinal Anesthesia
AUTHORS:
Chang Yen Yin, José Reinaldo Cerqueira Braz, Wei Tzon Hackan Chang Colares, Lídia Raquel de Carvalho, Marília Pinheiro Módolo, Paulo do Nascimento Junior, Norma Sueli Pinheiro Módolo
KEYWORDS:
Anesthesia, Nausea, Vomiting, Acupuncture, Ondansetron
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Anesthesiology,
Vol.7 No.8,
August
24,
2017
ABSTRACT: Objective: To compare P6 acupuncture plus ondansetron with either ondansetron or P6 acupuncture in the prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) in patients submitted to spinal anesthesia. Methods: A randomized controlled trial was performed with 90 patients undergoing orthopedic surgery under spinal anesthesia with bupivacaine, 15 to 17.5 mg, and morphine, 100 μg. They were assigned to one of the three groups: Group Ondansetron (n = 30), patients were given ondansetron, 8 mg intravenously, before spinal block was performed; Group P6 acupuncture (n = 30), patients were subjected to bilateral electrical stimulation of P6 acupoint for 30 minutes before anesthesia; and Group P6 acupuncture plus ondansetron (n = 30), the exact combination of the groups Ondansetron and P6 acupuncture. Results: In the post anesthesia care unit, the incidence of nausea and vomiting ranged from 13.3% to 26.7% and from 6.7% to 13.3%, respectively, with no significant differences among groups (p > 0.05). Ondansetron group had the highest incidence of nausea (73.3%) (p