Emesis after Intravenous Meperidine Administration to Emergency Department Patients

Abstract

Objective: To determine the frequency of emesis after intravenous administration of meperidine, with and without concurrent intravenous antiemetics, in emergency department (ED) patients. Design: Record review of consecutive patients who received intravenous meperidine in the ED. Setting: The ED of an urban teaching hospital. Patients: All patients who received intravenous meperidine during a 5-month period. Main Outcome Measures: Documentation of emesis and therapeutic measures commonly used to treat emesis. Results: Meperidine was administered intravenously at 173 patient visits; at 81 visits, meperidine was administered alone, and at 92 visits, concurrent antiemetics were administered. The prevalence of emesis was similar in both treatment groups (8.6%; p = 0.79). Conclusions: The prevalence of emesis associated with intravenous administration of meperidine is relatively infrequent in ED patients and generally associated with abdominal signs and symptoms at presentation. The concurrent administration of an intravenous antiemetic did not decrease the frequency of meperidine-associated emesis.