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PrepAdd™
PrepAdd websiteA better tasting colonoscopy prepDear Website Reader, We’re all friends here. One day you will need to get a colonoscopy. Everything that you have heard about the prep tasting awful, is true. At some point in-between drinking the first 1/2 gallon of prep and running to the toilet, you’ll say to yourself, “why can’t they make this stuff taste better”. Then, realizing you still have another 1/2 gallon to go, you’ll swear to any higher power that “you’ll pay anything to make the stuff taste better”. Well, we have figured out how to make the stuff taste better. It’s all about increasing the user experience, one rectum at a time.
Invention: Our innovation, PrepAdd™, embraces the inherent salinity of the PEG3350 solution. We have developed a proprietary flavor profile from a blend of ingredients, that when combined with warm tap water mimics a savory chicken bouillon soup, one of the few food items allowed while fasting. When mixed, it produces a palatable drink and a sense of satiation for the patient. It’s completely vegetarian in composition and made from all natural ingredients that are vegan-based, dairy-free, gluten-free, sugar-free, lactose-free, allergen-free, kosher, halal and with nothing artificial. Can also make it taste like beef, pork or roasted vegetable bouillon soup.
Packaged separately, you simply add the PrepAdd™ into the prep and add warm water. Flavor additive can be fabricated as a powder, self-dissolving tablet or liquid. Testing for palatability and efficacy of bowel cleanse can be accomplished thru a standard IRB study. Development is complete.
US Market size:
Regulatory issues:
Intellectual property:
Accomplishments to date:
My very clean upper and lower intestine! Goals:
End game:
Principle investigator: Brett Stern, Portland, OR www.brettstern.com
More info: Want to know more or have an upcoming colonoscopy and want to try some PrepAdd™? Contact our friendly Bowel Support team
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Background: Colon cancer is bad. It is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men and women combined in the US. The American Cancer Society estimates 150,000+ people were diagnosed last year and 50,000+ will die from colon cancer. The test to screen is a colonoscopy, which is an endoscopic examination and requires the bowels to be completely cleansed prior to the procedure. A colonoscopy prep is a prescribed oral solution that is an osmotic laxative indicated for cleansing the colon for preparation prior to a colonoscopy procedure. According to a 2015 consensus document for adequate bowel cleansing by the American College of Gastroenterology, American Gastroenterological Association and the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the recommended protocol is fasting for 24 hours and then drinking a split dose of a 1 gallon oral solution of a prescribed polyethylene glycol (PEG3350/Golytely) based chemical. The mixture is extremely salty to taste, smell, somewhat viscous in texture and challenging to fully consume. The powdered prep is supplied with a powdered flavor packet that comes in artificial fruity/sweet flavors, such as, cherry, pineapple or lemon lime. As an alternative, doctors suggest adding Crystal Lite or Gatorade to the prep solution and then chill in the refrigerator, as an attempt to mask the flavor. Whatever flavor you add, it still tastes like you’re consuming a gallon of very sweet ocean salt water. From the patients’ perspective, the unpleasant taste challenges many from fully drinking the volume of solution and completing the protocol. It has been documented that between 20%-25% of all procedures have inadequate bowel preparation and cannot be successfully completed. During the actual scoping process you are peacefully sedated.
When you first bring the glass to your nose you get a whiff of comforting chicken soup. Upon drinking, you get the warm sensation of nourishment and calming to your stomach.