Integrative and complementary practices to control nausea and vomiting in pregnant women: a systematic review.
Melissa Santos Nassif, Isabelle Cristinne Pinto Costa, Patricia Mônica Ribeiro and 2 others
PMID 36300661WHAT IT FOUND
In individual trials, lemon aromatherapy, ginger capsules and acupressure often beat controls for pregnancy nausea and vomiting.
The review could not combine results because studies varied too much.
Key findings
01Lemon aromatherapy was superior to control in 67% (n = 2) of aromatherapy studies, and adverse effects were mild and transient when reported.
02Phytotherapy studies showed superior results to control in 90% (n = 9), and 88.8% of those used some form of ginger.
03Acupuncture studies showed superior results to control in 77.7% (n = 14), and CS6 acupressure was used in 11 studies.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The review could not combine the trials into a meta-analysis. It does not give an overall effect for any practice. Many trials had some concerns or high risk of bias. Few described allocation concealment, and few reported masking. There was no standard outcome set for nausea and vomiting. Studies used different instruments, and this makes comparison hard. The review excluded hyperemesis gravidarum and women in labour or after birth. It does not address severe vomiting or later pregnancy. Some studies did not report adverse effects.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these practices as proven overall treatments for pregnancy nausea and vomiting. The review found positive results in individual trials, but it could not perform a meta-analysis, and many trials had some concerns or high risk of bias.