While some medications target vomiting (ondansetron/Zofran), there are no medications that specifically target nausea. Some medications used to treat Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG) may help reduce nausea but rarely will medications eliminate all nausea. Since there are numerous causes of nausea, treating as many as possible is most effective. This list of strategies may help reduce nausea in HG depending on what is triggering symptoms. None works for everyone, but each may help a little.

Strategies to reduce nausea in HG:

🔸Vitamin B6
🔸Avoid B1/thiamin deficiency
🔸Acid blockers or reducing medication
🔸Strict medication schedule
🔸Multiple classes of medications
🔸Non-oral routes for medication
🔸Lower, more frequent dose of medication
🔸Increase medication dose
🔸Rest and lay down
🔸Remove stressors
🔸Stay hydrated
🔸Avoid unpleasant odors
🔸Get help with cooking
🔸Stick to safe foods and small, frequent snacks

SHARE THE FACTS ABOUT HG
  • HG, hyperemesis gravidarum, is a pregnancy disease marked by rapid weight loss, malnutrition, and dehydration due to unrelenting nausea and/or vomiting.
  • HG is not the “morning sickness” of healthy, normal pregnancies. It is a distinct diagnosis marked by severe and relentless symptoms that pose significant risks to the health of both mother and baby. Over 1/3rd of HG babies do not make it to term.
  • HG babies are at increased risk for low birth weight, small size for gestational age, and preterm birth. In utero exposure to HG is linked to a 3.6-fold increased risk of emotional/behavioral & developmental disorders.
  • Nearly 20% of HG pregnancies are lost to therapeutic terminations, citing “no hope for relief.” Current treatments are not adequate to prevent termination of these planned, wanted pregnancies.
  • Mothers with HG’s most severe forms can experience pneumothorax, organ rupture, retinal detachment and blindness, eardrum and jaw damage, rib fractures, esophageal tears, the neurological syndrome Wernicke’s encephalopathy, or even death.
  • 18% of women report full criteria of post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSS) following an HG pregnancy. More than half of mothers have post-traumatic stress symptoms.
  • In 2009, inpatient treatment for HG in the U.S. cost more than $250,000,000. HG is the leading cause of hospitalization in early pregnancy, and is second only to preterm labor as the most common overall cause of hospitalization during pregnancy.

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