Efficacy of evidence-based institutional protocol for prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting: A prospective observational study.

Background: Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is the second most common complaint in the postoperative period, often resulting in increased post anaesthesia care unit (PACU) and hospital stay. Translation of knowledge into consistent practice was considered a major gap. Hence, the present study was undertaken to test the efficacy of locally developed evidence-based institutional protocol for prevention of PONV.

Methods: Phase I consisted of determining the baseline incidence of PONV before introduction of the institutional protocol for PONV prophylaxis. In phase II, educational sessions for anaesthesiologists for PONV prevention and treatment were conducted, after which an institutional protocol was introduced. In phase III, this protocol was implemented, and the incidence of PONV was recorded using the same methodology as in phase I. The rate of adherence to the institutional protocol was also recorded.

Results: The incidence of postoperative nausea (PON) dropped significantly from 32.5% in phase I to 20% in phase III (p = 0.033). Similarly, the incidence of postoperative vomiting (POV) decreased from 20.5% in phase I to 9.1% in phase III (p = 0.016). Of all anaesthesiologists, 78.18% were noted to adhere to the protocol in phase III. Incidence of PON and POV was significantly less in patients in whom PONV prophylaxis was administered in adherence to protocol (8.3% vs 57.7%, p < 0.001; 3.6% vs 26.9%, p < 0.001, respectively).

Conclusion: Evidence-based institutional protocols are effective in significantly reducing the incidence of PONV in adults undergoing noncardiac surgery under anaesthesia.

Clinical Trial Number And Registry Url: The trial was registered with Clinical Trials Registry of India (http:/ctri.nic.in) (CTRI/2015/12/006432).