The Republic of Singapore Navy's Scopoderm TTS study: results after 2,200 man-days at sea.

Most clinical trials investigating prevention of seasickness with transdermal scopolamine have been short-term, and little information regarding long-term use is available. We report here a double-blind trial conducted on board a flat-bottomed Republic of Singapore Navy vessel of 2,490 tons, sailing in the South China Sea. The trip lasted 26 d, but self-assessment by the 122 adult male participants (using a simplified scale quantifying the level of seasickness) was confined to the 18 d spent at sea. We found that the protection rate with transdermal scopolamine was 46-57%, with maximum benefits to inexperienced participants, during the early preadaptation phase, or in rough seas even after adaptation. Unwanted effects were few and generally minor. We concluded that the benefits of Scopoderm were worth exploiting even for long trips in moderate-to-rough seas.