Postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is one of the most common complaints following laparoscopic surgery, and being female is a risk factor for PONV. Therefore, we conducted this study to determine if the incidence of PONV is associated with variations in the blood concentration of female hormones that occur during different stages of the menstrual cycle.

We recruited 103 women who were undergoing gynecological laparoscopic surgery under general anesthesia and met all of the inclusion criteria for this study. A menstrual history was taken from each patient during the preoperative anesthetic visit and blood samples were collected from all patients to determine the concentration of female hormones (estradiol, progesterone). We then assessed the nausea rating scale (NRS) and the occurrence of retching and vomiting at 0-2 hours, 2-6 hours, and 6-24 hours postoperatively.

The overall incidence of PONV was 60.2% within the first 24 hours following surgery. However, no significant differences in the incidence of PONV were observed in women in different menstrual phases (follicular phase, 63.5% vs. luteal phase, 56.9%). In addition, there was no significant difference observed in the female hormonal concentration of the blood of patients who experienced PONV and those that did not, and there was no correlation between the NRS and the blood concentration of female hormones.

The results of this study suggest that female hormones (estradiol, progesterone) are not associated with the occurrence of PONV following gynecological laparoscopic surgery.