Background: Many patients dislike the taste and saltiness of polyethyl
ene glycol-electrolyte colonic lavage solutions, Several commercially
available lavage solutions have been introduced with reduced salt cont
ent or flavouring added in an attempt to improve palatability and to e
ncourage patient compliance. Aim: To determine which of the commercial
ly available lavage solutions are the most palatable. Methods: A taste
test of the five commercially available lavage solutions was performe
d by two groups of subjects: (a) adult patients scheduled to undergo c
olonoscopy (n = 50) and (b) adult family members of patients scheduled
to undergo colonoscopy and hospital volunteers (n = 50), Subjects sam
pled all five products and were asked to grade the taste and saltiness
, and to rank them in their overall order of preference. Results: Simi
lar findings were observed in the two groups of subjects. Colyte-Flavo
red, Cherry-NuLytely, NuLytely and GoLytely had similar median taste s
cores and a similar frequency of taste scores labelled as 'unacceptabl
e' (8-11%); these four products ranked ahead of plain Colyte (which ha
d a 25% frequency of taste scores labelled as 'unacceptable'). However
, in the ranking phase of the study, about three-quarters of the subje
cts preferred a flavoured lavage solution to an unflavoured one. Colyt
e-Flavored and Cherry-NuLytely rated almost equal. Twenty-two per cent
of subjects rated an unflavoured lavage solution (generally NuLytely
or GoLytely) as their first choice, This included a subset of subjects
who disliked the flavoured solutions and greatly preferred an unflavo
ured product. Conclusions: Four of the five commercially available pro
ducts studied received similar taste scores. However, in the direct co
mparison phase of the study, a majority of subjects expressed a prefer
ence for a flavoured lavage solution. On the other hand, about one in
five subjects expressed a dislike for the available flavoured solution
s and preferred an unflavoured one.