• Jung-Hee Kwon, Yeonghee Shin, and Hee-Soon Juon.
• Author Affiliations: College of Nursing, Keimyung University, Daegu, Korea (Ms Kwon and Dr Shin); and Department of Medical Oncology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Dr Juon).
• Cancer Nurs. 2016 Jan 1; 39 (1): 61-6.

BackgroundPostoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) after thyroidectomy is a common health problem in the recovery room.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to examine the effect of the Nei-Guan (P6) acupressure wristband for PONV among patients undergoing thyroidectomy.MethodsSixty Korean female participants were assigned to 1 of 3 groups (n = 20 each). The control group received usual care without the wristband. The placebo group received usual nursing care plus a wristband at the non-P6 site. The treatment group received usual care plus a wristband at the P6 acupoint 30 minutes before anesthesia; the wristband was removed before leaving the recovery room. Data were collected at 3 periods: in the recovery room and at 6 and 24 hours after surgery.ResultsThe nausea scores of the treatment group were significantly lower than the scores of the placebo or control groups in the recovery room (F = 6.229, P = .044). There were no significant differences in vomiting or retching among the groups.ConclusionsThe P6 stimulation with wristband suppressed nausea right after thyroidectomy in the recovery room but did not suppress subsequent vomiting or retching.Implication For PracticeThe findings indicate that P6 acupressure has the short-term effect of relieving nausea but not vomiting and retching. Use of P6 wristband holds promise and suggests the need for further testing in a larger randomized clinical trial. Identifying other acupoints is recommended to achieve successful management of PONV.

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