Comparison between different doses of dexamethasone combined with tropisetron in the prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting for laparoscopic assisted vaginal hysterectomy

Objective To compare the clinical effect of different doses of dexamethasone combined with tropisetron in the prevention of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) for laparoscopic assisted vaginal hysterectomy (LAVH). Methods One hundred and twenty patients of ASAⅠ~Ⅱ undergoing laparoscopic hysterectomy operation were randomly divided into three groups, with 40 cases in each group. At the end of the operation, patients in group D1 were given dexamethasone 5 mg and tropisetron 8 mg, patients in group D2 were given dexamethasone 10 mg and tropisetron 8 mg, while those in control group (C) were given tropisetron 8 mg only. The operation time, anesthesia time, amount of fentanyl were recorded. The cases and incidence of PONV were observed and recorded in the three groups within 24 hours after the operation. Results There were no statistically significant difference in the operation time, anesthesia time and fentanyl consumption between the three groups (P0.05). The cases and incidence of PONV in group D1 and group D2 was significantly lower than those in group C (P0.05). The incidence and the total number of cases of PONV showed no statistically significant differences between group D1 and group D2 (P0.05). Conclusion Dexamethasone combined with tropisetron shows significantly better effects than tropisetron alone for the prevention of PONV after LAVH. The incidence of PONV does not reduces as the doses of dexamethasone increases.