Team Describes Science-Based Hiccups Intervention; Users Reported Relief in 92% of Cases, with High Degrees of Effectiveness and Ease of Use

Researchers from The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio) and colleagues worldwide describe a new, science-based intervention for hiccups in a research letter published online on June 18, 2021 in the journal JAMA Network Open. In the publication, the scientists coined a new term for the intervention: the "forced inspiratory suction and swallow tool," or FISST. The team also reported the results of a survey of 249 users who were asked whether it is superior to hiccup home remedies such as breathing into a paper bag. "Hiccups are occasionally annoying for some people, but for others they significantly impact quality of life," said Ali Seifi, MD, Associate Professor of Neurosurgery in UT Health San Antonio's Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long School of Medicine. "This includes many patients with brain and stroke injury, and cancer patients. We had a couple of cancer patients in this study. Some chemotherapies cause hiccups." The article is titled “Evaluation of the Forced Inspiratory Suction and Swallow Tool to Stop Hiccups.”