Vomiting

Overview

Vomiting (emesis) is the forceful expulsion of stomach contents through the mouth. It is a reflex action that can result from numerous causes ranging from benign to serious. This data type enables tracking of vomiting episodes for pattern identification, dehydration risk assessment, and clinical consultation.

Health Significance

• Dehydration Risk: Repeated vomiting can lead to significant fluid and electrolyte losses
• Medication Monitoring: Common side effect of many drugs, especially chemotherapy
• Infection Tracking: Key symptom of gastroenteritis and food poisoning
• Pregnancy Monitoring: Morning sickness and hyperemesis gravidarum assessment
• Chronic Conditions: May indicate gastroparesis, cyclic vomiting syndrome, or other conditions

Clinical Context

Common Causes:

• Gastroenteritis (viral or bacterial)
• Food poisoning
• Medications (chemotherapy, opioids, antibiotics)
• Motion sickness
• Pregnancy
• Migraine
• Alcohol intoxication

Serious Causes Requiring Evaluation:

• Bowel obstruction
• Appendicitis
• Pancreatitis
• Head injury/increased intracranial pressure
• Diabetic ketoacidosis
• Cyclic vomiting syndrome
• Eating disorders

When to Seek Medical Attention

Emergency Symptoms:

• Vomiting blood or coffee-ground material
• Severe abdominal pain
• Signs of dehydration (dark urine, dizziness, confusion)
• Vomiting after head injury
• Projectile vomiting
• Vomiting with high fever and stiff neck
• Unable to keep any fluids down for 24 hours
• Vomiting with severe headache
• Vomiting with chest pain

Schedule Evaluation For:

• Vomiting lasting more than 48 hours
• Unexplained weight loss with vomiting
• Recurrent vomiting episodes without clear cause
• Vomiting with new medication
• Persistent vomiting in pregnancy affecting weight

Pattern Recognition

Tracking vomiting can reveal:

• Frequency and episode clustering
• Relationship to meals (timing, food triggers)
• Medication timing correlations
• Morning patterns (pregnancy, increased ICP)
• Migraine associations
• Response to antiemetics
• Recovery trajectory in acute illness
• Cyclic patterns (cyclic vomiting syndrome)

Caveats & Limitations

• Does not capture volume or character of emesis
• Cannot record emesis content (food, bile, blood)
• Subjective severity assessment
• Cannot distinguish vomiting from regurgitation
• Does not track fluid intake or hydration status
• Cannot capture interval between episodes
• Does not differentiate causes