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Effects of overshadowing on conditioned and unconditioned nausea in a rotation paradigm with humans

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Abstract

We examine whether overshadowing by salient stimuli is effective in reducing the ability of a certain environment (the putative conditioned stimulus) to evoke conditioned nausea in healthy humans that experience nausea-evoking rotation (as the unconditioned stimulus, US) in that environment. Twenty-four rotation-susceptible subjects (12 males, 12 females) were randomly assigned to receive either overshadowing by salient tasting beverages (OS+), or a control treatment (a familiar beverage, water; OS−) prior to rotation on three consecutive days (acquisition). To control for taste experiences, the alternative beverage was consumed 12 h later in the home environment (OS+: water, OS−: salient beverage). At Day 4 (test), all subjects drank the familiar beverage (water) prior to rotation (US). Rotation was standardized as 2 × 1-min rotation/day. Nausea was determined by a 7-item symptom scale measuring symptom number (SN) prior to (anticipatory), immediately after, and 15 and 30 min after rotation and by the Nausea Profile (NP) questionnaire immediately after rotation. Cortisol and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α in saliva were sampled at the same time-points. SN and cortisol were also measured at home. Overshadowing reduced anticipatory (conditioned) SN. Post-rotation nausea (i.e. the unconditioned response) measured by the NP decreased within the OS+ group only. Anticipatory cortisol and TNF-α were not affected by overshadowing. Treatment × gender interactions manifested for post-rotation cortisol and TNF-α. Groups did not differ in SN and cortisol at home. Overshadowing is effective in reducing symptoms of anticipatory nausea and rotation-induced unconditioned nausea; its effect on endocrine and immunological parameters is gender specific. Its application in alleviation of anticipatory nausea in cancer patients is considered.

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Acknowledgments

The study was supported by the Wellcome Trust by a grant to US, GH and SK. We gratefully acknowledge the contribution of Dipl.-Psych. Sandra Kellermann who did the subject recruitment, conducted the screening, and the main experimental study.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Psychology, Experimental Psychology II and Biological Psychology, University of Osnabrück, Seminarstrasse 20, 49074, Osnabrück, Germany

    Ursula Stockhorst

  2. Institute of Clinical Neuroscience and Medical Psychology, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Universitätsstrasse 1, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany

    Ursula Stockhorst

  3. Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, UK

    Geoffrey Hall

  4. University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK

    Geoffrey Hall

  5. University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

    Geoffrey Hall

  6. Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany

    Paul Enck & Sibylle Klosterhalfen

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  1. Ursula Stockhorst
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  2. Geoffrey Hall
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  3. Paul Enck
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  4. Sibylle Klosterhalfen
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Correspondence to Ursula Stockhorst.

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Stockhorst, U., Hall, G., Enck, P. et al. Effects of overshadowing on conditioned and unconditioned nausea in a rotation paradigm with humans. Exp Brain Res 232, 2651–2664 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-014-3998-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-014-3998-6

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