Cyclical vomiting syndrome is well recognized in children, but now new research indicates that it can affect adults as well, according to Reuters. With cyclical vomiting syndrome, patients experience nausea and vomiting lasting several hours or even days. These episodes are separated by symptom-free intervals usually lasting for weeks or months, according to a report in the journal BMC Medicine. In the present study, Dr. David R. Fleisher, from the University of Missouri School of Medicine in Columbia, and colleagues describe the clinical condition and treatment of 41 adult patients who met the standard definition for having cyclical vomiting syndrome. The age at which cyclical vomiting began in these patients ranged from 2 to 49 years, and the duration of disease ranged from less than 1 year to 49 years. The authors found that cyclical vomiting episodes often started at the same hour of the day, had the same symptoms, and lasted for the same amount of time. Ninety-three percent of patients experienced a "prodromal phase," when they knew an episode was coming. --More 22 23 Local Time 19 23 GMT
