Effects of preoperative gabapentin on postoperative nausea and vomiting after open cholecystectomy: a prospective randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effect of gabapentin on the incidence and severity of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) after open cholecystectomy.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A total of 90 patients scheduled for elective open cholecystectomy were randomly assigned to either a gabapentin group (600 mg, 2 h before surgery) or a placebo group. For the analysis, 1 patient was excluded from the gabapentin group and 2 patients from the placebo group. A standard technique was used for anesthesia. Pethidine and metoclopramide were used for postoperative management of pain and nausea/vomiting, respectively. The prevalence of PONV, its severity (measured on visual analogue scale, VAS), and total pethidine and metoclopramide use in the first 24 h after the operation were recorded.

RESULTS: There were no demographic differences between the two groups. Of the 44 patients given gabapentin, 16 (36.6%) and 28 of 43 (65.2%) placebo patients developed PONV; the difference was statistically significant (p = 0.02). However, there was no difference in the severity of PONV between the gabapentin and placebo groups (p = 0.12). Gabapentin patients used less pethidine (28.33 +/- 129 mg) and metoclopramide (6.0 +/-6.3 mg) than the placebo group (35.1 +/- 15.1 and 9.33 +/- 7.1 mg, respectively). The differences were statistically significant (pethidine: p = 0.002, metoclopramide: p = 0.033). However, gabapentin did not reduce postoperative pain significantly (p = 0.096).

CONCLUSION: Our data show that gabapentin not only reduced PONV after open cholecystectomy, but also reduced the need for additional postoperative analgesics.