Abstract

A short-cut review was carried out to establish whether prophylactic antiemetic agents reduce the incidence of vomiting in immobilised patients who have suffered trauma. A total of 137 papers were found using the reported searches, of which two presented the best evidence to answer the clinical question. The author, date and country of publication, patient group studied, study type, relevant outcomes, results and study weaknesses of these papers are tabulated. It is concluded that prophylactic use of antiemetic agents in trauma patients may reduce the likelihood of vomiting some 5–12-fold.