Post-operative nausea and vomiting in the cardiac surgery population: Who is at risk?

ObjectivesPost-operative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is a common and distressing complication following cardiac surgery. Therefore, our primary objective was to explore the predictors of severe PONV in the cardiac surgery population.MethodsA retrospective study was completed on cardiac surgery patients (N = 150). A modified preoperative PONV risk assessment tool was utilized to identify patients at high and low risk for PONV.Results54% of the high-risk group versus 13% of the low-risk group experienced ≥2 nausea events in the early post-operative period (p < 0.0001). The high-risk group had a uniquely elevated and sustained number of PONV events post-operatively. History of PONV (p = 0.03) and female gender (p = 0.01) emerged as significant predictors of any nausea event.ConclusionsA specific PONV risk assessment tool may be useful for predicting those at highest risk following cardiac surgery. Further research is required to identify strategies to reduce PONV.