This literature review sets out to investigate the effectiveness of
acupressure and acupuncture in preventing and managing
postoperative nausea and vomiting (
PONV) in adult patients.
PONV is problematic, affecting patient satisfaction, delayed discharge and even patient re-admission. Current treatment of
PONV constitutes a variety of
drug therapies, which are only partially effective. With the integration of complementary and alternative medicines in healthcare, this review examined 10 research studies investigating the use of
acupressure and acupuncture in treating
PONV. Three studies found
acupressure to be effective in preventing
PONV. However, population samples were small and the research designs had numerous anomalies. Overall the article suggests that acupuncture and
acupressure are ineffective in preventing and managing
PONV in adult patients. Further investigation of the effectiveness of
acupressure and acupuncture, combined with current
drug therapies, using well designed and adequately powered studies is needed. Published studies predominantly examined the use of P6 as the pressure point. Further studies should examine other '
acupoint' sites, to ascertain whether these are effective dependent upon the operative site.