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Abstract
Post-operative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is a common complication with ambulatory surgery. The incidence of post-operative nausea (POV) is suggested to be between 8.9 and 42% of children. PONV can lead to inflated health care costs related to expanded post anesthesia care unit (PACU) stays, prolonged nursing care, and over-night admissions. PONV is a poorly understood phenomenon. Some believe that prophylactic medications are helpful in the reduction of PONV, but it is still unclear why patients who are prophylactically treated still experience this adverse reaction to anesthesia. It has also been suggested that additional perioperative fluid administration can help reduce PONV, while others suggest that an increase in dextrose administration will combat PONV. This quantitative descriptive study evaluated the effect of supplemental D 5LR bolus therapy on PONV within the pediatric orthopedic patient population. A retrospective chart review was utilized to collect data. There was not enough evidence to conclude that D5LR bolus therapy reduced PONV, although data did reveal that larger volume boluses were related to PONV. Ultimately, though, only 7% of the 200 patients vomited, while 14% experienced nausea within the immediate post-operative period. Additionally discovered, was that younger patients experienced more episodes of POV. Further research needs to be conducted on the effect of dextrose administration on PONV in the post-operative period to gain additional data on its effectiveness.
