Treatment interventions for emetophobia: An extensive scoping review

A specific phobia of vomiting (SPOV), clinically known as emetophobia, is characterised by the severe fear of vomit and vomit-related stimuli. Whilst literature remains unequivocal on the detrimental effects of emetophobia, treatment recommendations and outcomes for emetophobia vary. This scoping review synthesises and maps research on treatment interventions for emetophobia, identifies current trends and potential gaps in emetophobia research, and their outcomes. The purpose is providing a comprehensive summary of treatment interventions to guide researchers in the development of evidence-based interventions. The review was conducted in accordance with JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis (2024). Five databases were searched (PubMed, SCOPUS, Google Scholar, PsycINFO and PsyArXiy), and a total of 37 studies met inclusion criteria. Results show CBT is the most frequently utilised treatment approach. Studies consisted predominantly of single-case studies (68%), with only two RCT's to date. Less than half of studies used assessment measurements specific to emetophobia to assess treatment outcomes. Findings show a range of therapeutic approaches have been used in the treatment of emetophobia, with CBT the most frequently utilised, although research remains in the early stages and is limited by small sample sizes. Future research should prioritise RCT's using emetophobia specific measures, with a particular emphasis on interventions identified in case studies, to more rigorously assess the effectiveness and generalisability of treatment.