The efficacy of prophylactic metoclopramide in preventing nausea and vomiting in patients with acute pain given tramadol: A randomized double-blinded placebo-controlled trial

Abstract

Objective This study aimed to conduct a randomized placebo-controlled trials to examine the clinical efficacy of prophylactic metoclopramide in reducing the incidence of nausea and vomiting in ED patients with acute pain and were treated with intravenous tramadol. Results The study protocol was registered in Thai Clinical Trials Registry (TCTR) [TCTR20220525001] in 21 October 2021. The Institutional Review Board of Lampang Hospital approved the study protocol (CERT NO. 103/64). A total of 99 ED patients presented with acute pain were recruited. Sixty-four patients were randomized, 31 patients in the treatment arm and 33 in the control arm. Overall, there were no significant differences in baseline characteristics between treatment arm and control arm. Only one patient within each arms reported having nausea symptoms. No patients reported vomiting episode. There was no statistically significant difference in the proportion of patients with nausea or vomiting symptoms between the two groups (3.1% in the treatment arm vs. 3.2% in the control arm, p = 1.000). The administration of prophylactic metoclopramide may not provide additional benefit in reducing the occurrence of nausea and/or vomiting episode in ED patients with acute pain treated with intravenous tramadol.