Effects of motion sickness patch on postoperative nausea and vomiting in female patients undergoing thyroid surgery: a randomized clinical trial

Background: This study aims to investigate whether the application of motion sickness patch can effectively reduce the incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) in female patients undergoing thyroid surgery. Methods: One hundred and sixty-two female patients undergoing thyroid surgery were randomly assigned into motion sickness patch group and control group. Both groups received standard prophylactic antiemetic therapy with intravenous dexamethasone (8 mg) and palonosetron (0.075 mg). The primary outcome was the incidence of PONV during the first 24 hours postoperatively. Secondary outcomes included PONV severity, 15-item quality of recovery, visual analogue scale pain score, ramsay sedation score, Post-anesthetic care unit residence time, time to first flatus and defecation, the incidence of adverse events, and the length of hospital stay. Results: The incidence of PONV within the first 24 hours after surgery was significantly lower in the motion sickness patch group compared to the control group [18.5% (15 of 81) vs. 34.6% (28 of 81); relative risk, 0.536; 95% confidence interval, 0.310-0.925; P = 0.021]. Conclusions: The findings of this study indicate that the application of motion sickness patch can effectively reduce the occurrence of nausea and vomiting within 24 hours after thyroid surgery in female patients.