Comparison between Two Drug Combination Effects on Post-Operative Nausea and Vomiting in Abdominal Operations (Granisetron & Dexamethasone VS Droperidol & Dexamethasone)

Nowadays, many drug groups are available for prophylaxis and treatment of post-operative nausea and vomiting(PONV). These drugs can have different effects on individual patients and surgical procedures. Additionally, some of these drugs are expensive and this can be a limiting factor in their selection. Moreover, no exact protocol exists for the use of these drugs. Due to the involvement of different neurotransmitters in these phenomena(nausea and vomiting), multiple drug therapy can be more effective. Therefore, in this double-blind randomized clinical trail(RCT) study, 140 patients with intra-abdominal operation (in which PONV could be seen with high incidence) were selected and randomly divided into two groups. Later, different prophylactic measures were used in these groups and their effects were then compared. In the first group the combination of granisetron and dexamethasone was used while the combination of dexamethasone and droperidol was used in the second group in order to determine and compare the incidence of PONV 24h after operation in these two groups. The range of age was 15-50. Alcohol and drug abuse, the use of neurologic drugs, operations more than 4 hours and women in their first 10 days of menstrual period were exclusion criteria. The incidence of PONV in granisetron/dexamethasone group was 1.4% and 23% in the other group(P=0.0001). According to this study the great efficacy of granisetron is in favor of its routine use with dexamethasone as a prophylactic measure.