Behavioral Treatment of Hyperemesis Gravidarum

Hyperemesis gravidarum, while no longer a serious threat to maternal mortality, is a serious disorder endangering pregnancy. While recognition of psychological factors in the etiology of the disorder has been considerable, prior writing has been speculative and often the methodology used in research has been unsound. This paper presents a technique for the assessment of the idiosyncratic factors triggering nausea and vomiting in the individual patient and a methodology to develop short-term therapy around that information. Four case studies are presented to illustrate the procedures. While further research is clearly needed, these results suggest that the presumption of a singular underlying dynamic as the controlling cause of hyperemesis gravidarum is probably not useful.