Stimulation Of The Wrist Acupuncture Point P6 For Preventing Postoperative Nausea And Vomiting

Main Category: Complementary Medicine / Alternative Medicine
Article Date: 16 Apr 2009 - 2:00 PDT

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Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) are common complications following surgery and anaesthesia. Drugs to prevent PONV are only partially effective. An alternative approach is to stimulate the P6 acupoint on the wrist. This is an update of a Cochrane review first published in 2004.

Extract from Implications for Practice

Patients with a very high baseline risk of postoperative nausea and vomiting are more likely to benefit from P6 acupoint stimulation. No major side effects were associated with P6 acupoint stimulation. The risks of postoperative nausea and vomiting were similar after P6 acupoint stimulation and antiemetic drugs. P6 acupoint stimulation may be a suitable alternative or addition to antiemetic drugs for preventing postoperative nausea and vomiting.

(CD003281) by Lee and Fan

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Source
The Cochrane Library