Nausea intensity as a reflector of early physical recovery after surgery

Abstract

Aim To compare different levels of self‐rated average nausea intensity with early physical recovery and determine if nausea can reflect recovery in patients undergoing general or orthopaedic surgery. Background Nausea has been found to influence postoperative physical recovery. Despite the incidence of nausea in postoperative care, there is a knowledge gap about the possibility of using average nausea intensity to reflect recovery, motivating further investigation. Design An observational design with repeated measures. Methods General and orthopaedic patients answered a questionnaire (October 2012–January 2015) about nausea and impact on recovery on postoperative days 1 (N = 479) and 2 (N = 441). Questions about average nausea intensity at rest and during activity were answered based on the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) (0–10). Impact on recovery was evaluated using three dimensions from the postoperative recovery profile tool. Results About one‐fifth of the patients reported nausea intensity as moderate to severe on days 1 and 2. Nausea intensity was associated with eight of nine aspects of recovery on postoperative day 1. Nausea intensity on day 1 also reflected four of nine aspects of recovery on day 2. About reflecting physical recovery, the association was strongest between nausea intensity and appetite changes. Conclusions As postoperative nausea is common, regular assessments by healthcare professionals are needed. Assessment of nausea is of importance since it reflects physical recovery. This also shows the importance of treating nausea without delay. Using the NRS to measure nausea intensity is a simple method that is easy to use in clinic.

The association of patients' daily summarized self‐rated “real‐time” pain scores with physical recovery after major surgery – A repeated measurement design

“…Our results can provide approaches to improve documentation of pain which facilitate understanding of patients' pain over time and their prognosis for recover. As nausea is another major side effect of surgery and use of common postoperative analgesia such as opioids (Gan, Habib, Miller, White, & Apfelbaum, ), corresponding studies have been performed considering impacts from nausea on postoperative recovery (Eriksson, Årestedt, Broström, Wikström, , Wikström, Nilsson, Broström, Eriksson, ).…”

Nurse-delivered acupressure on early postoperative gastrointestinal function among patients undergoing colorectal cancer surgery

“…The degree of abdominal distention was evaluated by the 11-scale Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) (0–10) (0 ​= ​no complaints at all; 10 ​= ​the most severe symptoms). 36 NRS is sensitive and simple to measure patients’ experiences and is both reliable and valid, thus is widely used in clinical environment. 37 , 38 Bowel motility was evaluated by a stethoscope to assess the number of intestinal peristalsis sounds in 1 ​min on the body surface above the ileocecal valve in the lower right corner of the abdomen.…”

Nutritional Orthopedics and Space Nutrition as Two Sides of the Same Coin: A Scoping Review

“…Protein/bone loss Dysbiosis Neurobehavioral health [100][101][102] Pain control, nausea, and early physical recovery.…”

“…Surgical incision elicits both local (e.g., tissue injury, inflammation, neuroendocrine activation) and systemic (e.g., stress hormones, altered circadian entrainment) responses [18], leading to a wide range of pathological alterations, such as skeletal muscle protein degradation, illness-promoting dysbiosis, and behavioral/psychological disturbances [99]. Surgical pain and post-operative nausea are known to decrease appetite and nutrient intake, thus further delaying recovery [100][101][102].…”