Fentanyl-induced cough is a risk factor for postoperative nausea and vomiting

Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) and fentanyl-induced cough (FIC) are two common anaesthesia-related events, which seem to have common risk factors. In this prospective cohort study, we investigate whether patients who have FIC during induction of anaesthesia have an increased incidence of PONV.

We studied adult non-smoking gynaecological surgical patients enrolled between July 1, 2011 and July 30, 2012. The presence of FIC during induction and the occurrence of PONV were recorded. Fentanyl-induced cough and other perioperative variables were subjected to multivariate analysis to determine the association between FIC and PONV.

All 502 patients enrolled in this study had at least two risk factors for PONV, and 154 (31%) developed FIC. The incidence of PONV in the FIC group was higher than in the non-FIC group (56.5 vs 38.2%; P<0.0001). Multivariate logistic regression analysis found FIC to be a predictive risk factor for the development of PONV (adjusted odds ratio 2.08, 95% confidence interval 1.41-3.07).

Non-smoking women undergoing gynaecological surgery who develop FIC during induction of anaesthesia have a higher incidence of PONV.