Cancer
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Comparative Study
Intravenous metoclopramide: prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. A preliminary evaluation.
The authors tested the safety and efficacy of intravenous metoclopramide in the prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. Those studied included hospitalized patients receiving their initial treatment with potent, emetogenic non-cisplatin-containing regimens, and outpatients receiving both their initial and maintenance non-cisplatin-containing chemotherapy. Fifty patients received metoclopramide with one or more of three intravenous metoclopramide dosage schedules, based on whether they received their chemotherapy on an inpatient or outpatient basis. ⋯ It is concluded that intravenous metoclopramide possesses significant antiemetic activity in patients receiving potent, non-cisplatin-containing chemotherapy. The dosage and scheduling required to provide total protection against nausea and vomiting appears to be dependent on the inherent emetic potency of the chemotherapy used. Further studies involving large numbers of patients are required to determine the optimal dosage and scheduling of this agent.