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Research: PORTNOI and colleagues,
Listed in Issue 98
Abstract
PORTNOI and colleagues, The Motherisk Program, The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada, report on a study of the safety and effectiveness of ginger for the treatment of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy.
Background
Primarily, this study was concerned with evaluating the safety of ginger as a treatment for nausea and vomiting in pregnancy. Secondarily, it was also aimed at establishing the efficacy of this treatment.
Methodology
In this prospective study, pregnant women who were taking ginger in he first trimester of pregnancy were compared to women who took other, not antiemetic, drugs. The women were followed up to birth. They were also asked to rate on a 0-10 scale the effectiveness of ginger for their symptoms.
Results
187 pregnant women in total enrolled in the study. At least 66 of them took ginger during the first trimester. Among the births, 181 were live, 2 stillbirths, 3 spontaneous abortions and 1 therapeutic abortion. There were no statistical differences in birth outcomes between women who took ginger and those who took other drugs, except that women who took other drugs were more likely to give birth to infants weighing less than 2500 g (p = 0.001). The effectiveness scales completed resulted in a modest improvement of nausea and vomiting of 3.3 (SD 2.9).
Conclusion
From these data it appears that ginger is a safe treatment for nausea and vomiting in pregnancy and offers modest benefits.
References
Portnoi G, Chang LA, Karimi TL, Koren G, Tan MP, Einarson A. Prospective comparative study of the safety and effectiveness of ginger for the treatment of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology 189 (5): 1374-1377, Nov 2003.
