Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer
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Support Care Cancer · Dec 2010
Pharmaceutical interventions facilitate premedication and prevent opioid-induced constipation and emesis in cancer patients.
Opioid analgesics possess a number of side effects, among which constipation and nausea/vomiting occur most frequently. Although pretreatment with laxatives and antiemetics for the prophylaxis of opioid-induced constipation and nausea/vomiting, respectively, is recommended, such side effects are still a matter of concern in clinical setting. ⋯ Intervention to promote prophylactic medication was highly effective in reducing the risk of opioid-induced constipation and nausea/vomiting.