Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Jul;19(4):299-301.
doi: 10.7861/clinmedicine.19-4-299.

Nausea and vomiting in palliative care

Charlotte Leach  1
Affiliations

Nausea and vomiting in palliative care

Charlotte Leach. Clin Med (Lond). 2019 Jul.

Abstract

Nausea and vomiting in palliative care are commonly experienced symptoms, and the aetiology is often multifactorial. The most common causes are impaired gastric emptying, chemical causes (eg medication) and visceral causes (eg constipation). Close attention should be paid to the clinical features which may suggest the likely cause. Antiemetic therapy should be guided by the likely aetiology, although in practice, the clinical picture is often complex, and so regular reassessment is essential for adequate symptom control.

Keywords: Nausea; antiemetic; palliative care; vomiting.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig 1.
Fig 1.
Key emetogenic pathways. Ach = Acetylcholine receptor; CTZ = chemoreceptor trigger zone; D2 = dopamine type 2 receptor; GABA = gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor; H1 = histamine type 1 receptor; ICP = intracranial pressure; NK1 = neurokinin 1 receptor; 5HT2 = serotonin type 2 receptor; 5HT3 = serotonin type 3 receptor; 5HT4 = serotonin type 4 receptor.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Clark D, Armstrong M, Allan M, et al. Imminence of death among a national cohort of hospital inpatients. Pall Med 2014;28:474–9. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Harris D. Nausea and vomiting in advanced cancer. Br Med Bull 2010;96:175–85. - PubMed
    1. Rhodes V, McDaniel R. Nausea, vomiting and retching: complex problems in palliative care. Cancer J Clin 2001;51:232–48. - PubMed
    1. Stephenson J, Davies A. An assessment of aetiology-based guidelines for the management of nausea and vomiting in patients with advanced cancer. Support Care Cancer 2006;14:348–53. - PubMed
    1. Solano J, Gomes B, Higginson I. A comparison of symptom prevalence in far advanced cancer, AIDS, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and renal disease. J Pain Symp Manag 2006;31:58–69. - PubMed