ABSTRACT BACKGROUND:

Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is a common complication from general anesthesia that impacts on postoperative recovery.

OBJECTIVE:

To evaluate prophylactic rewarming following general anesthesia, so as to decrease the incidence of PONV among patients undergoing laparoscopic hysterectomy.

DESIGN AND SETTING:

Prospective randomized clinical study at a hospital in China.

METHODS:

Sixty-two patients were randomly assigned into two groups. The forced air warming (FAW) group received pre-warmed Ringer's solution with FAW until the end of surgery. The control group received Ringer's solution without FAW. The pre-warmed Ringer's solution was stored in a cabinet set at 40 °C. The FAW tube was placed beside the patient's shoulder with a temperature of 43 °C.

RESULTS:

Sixty patients completed the study. The FAW group showed significant differences versus the controls regarding temperature. At 6, 24 and 48 hours postoperatively, the incidences of PONV were 53.3%, 6.7% and 3.3% in the FAW group versus 63.3%, 30% and 3.3% in the controls. VAS scores were significantly lower in the FAW group than in the controls at 24 hours (P= 0.035). Forty-item questionnaire total scores in the FAW group were significantly higher than in the controls. The physical independence and pain scores at 24 hours and emotional support and pain scores at 48 hours in the FAW group were higher than in the controls (P < 0.05). There was no difference in hemodynamics or demographics between the two groups (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS:

Prophylactic rewarming relieved PONV and improved the quality of postoperative recovery. CHINESE CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTER (ChiCTR): ChiCTR-IOR-17012901.