Integrative and complementary practices to control nausea and vomiting in pregnant women: a systematic review*

Abstract

Objective: to synthesize the evidence available in the literature on the effects of integrative and complementary practices in nausea and vomiting treatment in pregnant women. Method: a systematic review, reported according to PRISMA and registered in PROSPERO. The search for studies was carried out in 11 databases. To assess risk of bias in randomized clinical trials, the Cochrane Collaboration Risk of Bias Tool (RoB 2) was used. Results: the final sample consisted of 31 articles, divided into three categories: aromatherapy, phytotherapy and acupuncture. It was observed that aromatherapy with lemon essential oil, ginger capsules, pericardial 6 point acupressure were the interventions that proved to be effective. Less than half of studies reported adverse effects, with mild and transient symptoms predominating. Most articles were classified as “some concern” in risk of bias assessment. Conclusion: the three most effective interventions to control gestational nausea and vomiting were aromatherapy, herbal medicine and acupuncture, with significant results in the assessment of individual studies.