The influence of the intravenous anesthetics and inhalational anesthetics on PONV

Postoperative nausea and vomiting （PONV） are among the most frequent complications after general anesthesia. Avoiding these symptoms is of importance for most patients; PONV is not only a major source of discomfort for patients but also a cause of additional costs for the patients and the health care provider. Among all the risk factors of the PONV, anesthetic is the most important one. It＇ s reported that the cumulative incidence of PONV is significantly more frequent with the use of inhalational anesthetics. In order to reduce the side effect of single drug the authors advocate the combination of intravenous anesthetics with inhalatlonal anesthet- ics in general anesthesia. In this review, the authors summarize the brief pathophysiological mechanism of PONV and compare the in- fluence of the intravenous anesthetics with inhalational anesthetics on PONV. An anesthetist will get more idea of the side effect of every narcotic on PONV in this paper and will make a more reasonable selection, so that the PONV will be effectively prevented. Key words: PONV;  intravenous anesthetics ;  inhalational anesthetic