Posted 8/11/2016 5:49 PM (GMT 0)
I just had my second colonoscopy done and I had requested the same prep as last time, which was Prepopik. I've commented on other threads about it but I should probably make my own topic because I think it will be helpful to others.
I've never tried anything else, so I don't have anything to compare it to other than people's horror stories about the preps they've had to do. I'm not sure if it's always an option, but if it is, I highly recommend it.
You should obviously go to the website to read the instructions, but a quick summary is that the prep itself is only 5 ounces taken twice, separately, so 10 ounces total. And...it doesn't taste bad. It tastes kind of like a really sweet lemonade. I don't tolerate gross-tasting stuff well at all, which is why my first doctor recommended it. Note: when the instructions tell you to use cold water, USE COLD WATER. Don't even use room temperature water because when you start stirring the mixture around, it actually heats up.
Now, obviously you still have to hydrate big time. So you want to be drinking water throughout the day, and specifically you have to drink 5 glasses of water after the first dose (you have several hours in which to do this) and 3 glasses after the second dose. That's the worst of it. I had 12 glasses of water total that day. Now, supposedly I was still a little dehydrated on scope day, so you might want to drink even more than 12 glasses, but everything else went smoothly.
The only drawback is that it can be expensive without insurance. I ended up not having to pay anything for it, but it would have been around $160-$180. I would have gladly paid that, though, because I think it's so worth it.
I should add, just like anything else, I know some people have had bad results. Either they weren't cleaned out enough or they had bad cramping. I had no cramping whatsoever, but I will make sure to ask my doctor how cleaned out I was so I can be sure it was indeed the best choice.