Inhalation Intervention for Nausea in the Emergency Department

Inhalation Intervention for Nausea in the Emergency Department

Randomized controlled trial comparing inhalation of isopropyl alcohol vs placebo (normal saline) pads to treat nausea in emergency department patients.

This study is to investigate if inhaling the scent of a typical medical alcohol prep pad will alleviate nausea as compared to a identically packaged normal saline prep pad for the Emergency Department patient with nausea. The study length will be 10 minutes long. The subjects will take several deep nasal inhalations at the 0, 2, 5 minute marks. Level of nausea will be recorded during these times and at 10 minutes. The investigators will also assess satisfaction of the intervention. As in previous post operative unit studies,the hypothesis is that there will a significant difference in levels of nausea between the alcohol pad group versus the normal saline pad group.

Inclusion Criteria:

• age range of 18-65 years of age
• complaint of nausea and or vomiting
• ability to breathe through nose
• ability to read and write English

Exclusion Criteria:

• allergy to isopropyl alcohol
• pregnancy or pregnancy status unknown to subject. Pregnancy test only if part of clinical course.
• recent upper respiratory infection
• recent intake of cefoperazone, disulfiram, or metronidazole or any other medications that are known produce nausea when exposed to alcohol.
• use of antiemetic or psychoactive drug within 24 hours
• alcohol abuse
• nicotine within last 4 hrs