Everything about Nausea totally explained
Nausea (
Latin:
Nausea,
Greek:
Ναυτεία, "
sea-sickness") is the sensation of unease and discomfort in the
stomach with an urge to
vomit.
Causes
Nausea isn't a sickness, but rather a symptom of several conditions, many of which are not related to the stomach. Nausea is often indicative of an underlying condition elsewhere in the body.
Travel sickness, which is due to confusion between perceived movement and actual movement, is an example. The sense of equilibrium lies in the ear and works together with eyesight. When these two don't "agree" to what extent the body is actually moving the symptom is presented as nausea even though the stomach itself has nothing to do with the situation. Nausea is also an
adverse effect of many drugs. Nausea may also be an effect of a large intake of sugary foods.
In medicine, nausea can be a problem during some
chemotherapy regimens and following
general anaesthesia. Nausea is also a common symptom of
pregnancy, in which it's called "morning sickness". Mild nausea experienced during pregnancy can be normal, and shouldn't be considered an immediate cause for alarm.
Other causes of nausea:
Treatment
While short-term nausea and vomiting are generally harmless, they may sometimes indicate a more serious condition, such as
Coeliac disease. When associated with prolonged vomiting, it may lead to
dehydration and/or dangerous electrolyte imbalances.
Symptomatic treatment for nausea and vomiting may include short-term avoidance of solid
food. This is usually easy as nausea is nearly always associated with loss of
appetite. Dehydration may require
rehydration with oral or intravenous
electrolyte solutions. If the cause is by
motion sickness, sitting down in a still environment may also help.
There are several types of
antiemetics, and researchers continue to look for more effective treatments. The main types used post operatively for surgical patients are
ondansetron,
dexamethasone,
promethazine,
diphenhydramine, and in small doses
droperidol.
Doxylamine is the drug of choice in pregnancy-related nausea. Anecdotally, another remedy used by recovery room nurses is to place an
isopropyl alcohol swab under the patient's nose while he or she breathes through the nose. This may abate the nausea until the antiemetic medication takes effect. When ingested or inhaled, the chemical compound
tetrahydrocannabinol has been shown to reduce nausea in some users. Also available are a variety of non-invasive (often untested) mechanical devices used to suppress nausea due to motion sickness.
The spices
ginger and
peppermint have also been used for centuries as a folk remedy to treat nausea, and recent research has supported this use.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Nausea'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://nausea.totallyexplained.com">Nausea Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
