Background: Emesis gravidarum is one of the popular health issues affecting gravid women and results in maternal and newborn adverse effects.
Purpose: The goal of the study was to determine how low-level laser therapy affected emesis gravidarum acupoints.
Patients and Methods: Forty pregnant women with emesis gravidarum were chosen in this prospective, randomized, controlled trial study; they were chosen from the Al-Asmarat Medical Center's gynecology outpatient clinic. They were equally distributed into two groups (A and B) at random (20 women per group). For group A (Study group), the women received low-level laser therapy (LLLT) on the ST36 acupoint for three minutes on each side, 3 days weekly for two weeks, and anti-emetic medications. While Group B (Control group), was treated with anti-emetic drugs only (meclizine hydrochloride, 25 mg, and pyridoxine hydrochloride, 50 mg, once per day for 2 weeks). The Pregnancy Unique Quantification of Emesis (PUQE) questionnaire was utilized to evaluate emesis gravidarum in both groups before and following the therapy.
Results: Statistical analysis showed a highly significant reduction of nausea, vomiting, and retching without vomiting (p = 0.0001) in both groups (A and B), but when comparing between the two groups' results, Group A showed a statistically significant decrease in the PUQE total score more than Group B (p = 0.0001).
Conclusion: LLLT applied to certain acupoints is a helpful adjunctive therapy for reducing nausea and vomiting in pregnant women with emesis gravidarum.