Diet restriction is not mandatory with sodium picosulphate/magnesium citrate based bowel preparation

Aim: This study aimed to investigate whether a 3-day diet restriction before colonoscopy is necessary as part of a bowel preparation regimen. Material and Methods: This retrospective trial was conducted as a single-blinded study at a tertiary hospital. Overall, 60 adult patients who used sodium picosulphate with magnesium citrate regimen for bowel preparation were divided into two groups (Group 1: diet restriction = 29; Group 2: no diet restriction = 31) based on whether they used a 2-day diet restriction before the colonoscopy. The colonoscopy video records were evaluated by a clinician who was blinded to the type of bowel preparation. The Ottawa Bowel Preparation Quality Score was used to evaluate the quality of bowel cleansing. Results: No significant intergroup differences were observed regarding the bowel cleansing quality, both overall and all segments of the colon. The overall adequate colon cleansing was 93.1% in Group 1 and 77.4% in Group 2. The percentage of patients with a score of 0 on the Ottawa scale based on the cleansing was higher in Group 2 than Group 1 (6.9% vs. 22.6%) Discussion: This study observed that sodium picosulphate with magnesium citrate regimen without diet restriction delivered similar bowel preparation and successful colonoscopy results like those achieved with diet restriction. Sodium picosulphate with magnesium citrate, which requires less fluid volume and has a better taste, can be chosen without diet restriction for bowel preparation to ensure adequate patient compliance.