Efficacy of prophylactic ondansetron in Thai patients undergoing gastrointestinal tract surgery

Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) although frequently is considered a minor postoperative complication, it may be greatly trouble some especially in ambulatory surgical patients. This study was performed to compare the efficacy and safety of a single intravenous bolus dose of ondansetron 4 mg with the placebo in the prevention of PONV and to assess the safety and tolerability in Thai patients. By using the randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled study design, we enrolled 82 Thai male and female patients, ASA physical status I or II, between the ages of 12 and 75 year undergoing gastrointestinal tract surgery with general anesthesia in the study. A single intravenous bolus dose of ondansetron 4 mg or a single dose of placebo was administered immediately prior to the induction of the anesthesia. The patients were followed for 24 hours to assess PONV and adverse events. We found that intravenous ondansetron 4 mg seemed to be effective and safe in the prevention of PONV especially in female patients (P = 0.037) based on clinical observation. However there was no statistical significance between groups. None of the patients in both groups had any adverse events. In addition, there was no significant difference between preoperative and postoperative abnormalities of liver enzymes. Also we had found no difference in patient satisfaction between two groups.