hyperemesis gravidarum

Hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) is a severe, debilitating nausea and vomiting in pregnancy that generally leads to more than 5 percent weight loss and may require fluid and nutritional supplement. It is different from the more common nausea and vomiting known as morning sickness. Dehydration, malnutrition, and other serious complications are the result of the “unrelenting, excessive pregnancy-related nausea and/or vomiting that prevents adequate intake of food and fluids.” Hyperemesis is considered a rare complication of pregnancy but, because nausea and vomiting during pregnancy exist on a continuum, there is often not a good diagnosis between common morning sickness and hyperemesis. Estimates of the percentage of pregnant women afflicted range from 0.3% to 2.0%.