Bowel prep brands, A to Z
In short
The dozens of bowel prep brand names you might hear belong to just four chemical families. PEG (polyethylene glycol) preparations include GoLYTELY, Klean-Prep, MoviPrep and Plenvu. Sulfate preparations include SUPREP, Sutab and Eziclen. Picosulfate with magnesium preparations include Picolax, CitraFleet, Pico-Salax and Clenpiq. Sodium phosphate preparations are now rarely used. Knowing the family tells you most of what matters: how much you will drink, what it tastes like, and who needs to be cautious. Kidney disease is the most important example. The brand you take is the one your clinician prescribes, and your instruction sheet overrides any general description here.
What this page covers
- The four families, in one line each
- An A-to-Z table of brand names, countries, and volumes
- "Which is the lowest volume?" answered honestly
- Who should avoid which family
The four families
- PEG (polyethylene glycol) with electrolytes. The PEG is not absorbed, so it carries water through the bowel. Body salts are balanced, so there is very little fluid shift. Traditional versions use 4 litres. Newer low-volume versions add ascorbate (vitamin C) or sulfate to cut the volume to 1 to 2 litres. See PEG-based preparations.
- Sulfate salts. Sodium, potassium, and magnesium sulfates draw water into the bowel. They come as a small volume of medicine followed by a lot of water. See sulfate-based preparations.
- Sodium picosulfate with magnesium citrate. A stimulant laxative is combined with an osmotic one. It is small and relatively pleasant to drink, but it needs generous extra fluid. Magnesium is a reason for caution in kidney disease.
- Sodium phosphate. These are small-volume tablets or liquids. Because of the risk of acute phosphate nephropathy, a form of kidney injury, they are now rarely used, and some forms have been withdrawn.
Brand names, A to Z
Volumes are approximate. They describe the standard adult split-dose regimen and can vary with country and product version. "Medicated volume" is the prep itself. The extra clear fluid you are told to drink comes on top of this, and it is often the larger part.
| Brand | Main markets | Family | Medicated volume (total) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CitraFleet | UK, Europe | Picosulfate / magnesium | Two sachets, each in about 150 mL of water | Plenty of extra clear fluid required. Caution in kidney disease. |
| Citramag | UK | Magnesium citrate | Sachets dissolved in water | Often paired with senna. Caution in kidney disease. |
| Clenpiq | US | Picosulfate / magnesium | About 320 mL (two ready-to-drink 160 mL bottles) | Several cups of clear fluid follow each dose. Caution in kidney disease. |
| Colyte | US | PEG, high volume | 4 litres | A traditional large-volume PEG. |
| Eziclen / Izinova | UK, Europe | Sulfate | Two bottles, each diluted to about half a litre | The European counterpart of SUPREP. Extra water follows each dose. |
| GaviLyte (-C, -G, -N) | US | PEG, high volume | 4 litres | Generic PEG-electrolyte solutions. |
| GlycoPrep (-C, Orange, Kit) | Australia, New Zealand | PEG | Depends on the kit | Some kits combine PEG with a picosulfate sachet. |
| GoLYTELY | US | PEG, high volume | 4 litres | The original PEG-electrolyte solution. Often preferred in kidney or heart disease. |
| Klean-Prep | UK, Europe | PEG, high volume | 4 litres (four 1-litre sachets) | Traditional large-volume PEG. |
| MiraLAX with a sports drink | US (off-label) | PEG without electrolytes | About 2 litres | Widely used, but not a licensed bowel prep. Use it only if your unit prescribes it. |
| MoviPrep | US, UK, Europe, Canada, Australia | PEG with ascorbate, low volume | 2 litres | At least 1 litre of extra clear fluid. Caution in G6PD deficiency and phenylketonuria. |
| NuLYTELY / TriLyte | US | PEG, sulfate-free, high volume | 4 litres | Reformulated to taste less salty. |
| OsmoPrep / Visicol | US (largely unavailable) | Sodium phosphate tablets | Tablets with water | Boxed warning for kidney injury. Avoid in kidney disease. |
| PEG-Lyte, Colyte (Canada) | Canada | PEG, high volume | Up to 4 litres | Sometimes prescribed as a reduced 2 to 3 litre regimen with bisacodyl. |
| Phospho-soda | Withdrawn in most markets | Sodium phosphate liquid | Small volume | No longer recommended as a bowel prep because of kidney risk. |
| Pico-Salax | Canada | Picosulfate / magnesium | Two sachets, each in about 150 mL of water | Plenty of extra clear fluid required. Caution in kidney disease. |
| Picolax | UK, Ireland | Picosulfate / magnesium | Two sachets, each in about 150 mL of water | Plenty of extra clear fluid required. Caution in kidney disease. |
| Picoprep | Australia, New Zealand | Picosulfate / magnesium | Sachets in water | Often combined with PEG in local kits. |
| Plenvu | US, UK, Europe, Canada, Australia | PEG with ascorbate and sulfate, very low volume | 1 litre (two 500 mL doses) | At least 1 litre of extra clear fluid. Caution in G6PD deficiency and phenylketonuria. |
| SUPREP | US | Sulfate | About 950 mL (two 6 oz bottles, each diluted to 16 oz) | Two 16 oz glasses of water after each dose. Caution in kidney, heart, and liver disease. |
| Sutab | US | Sulfate tablets | 24 tablets (12 per dose) | About 1.4 litres of water per dose. Caution in kidney disease and swallowing problems. |
Brands come and go. If yours is not here, the active ingredients on the box will tell you which family it belongs to.
Which is the lowest volume?
If you count only the medicine, the picosulfate preparations (Picolax, CitraFleet, Pico-Salax, Clenpiq) are smallest, at roughly a third of a litre. Plenvu is the smallest PEG at 1 litre, followed by MoviPrep at 2 litres.
But every low-volume prep asks for substantial extra clear fluid, and once that is included the totals come much closer together. Most low-volume regimens add up to around 2 to 3 litres of fluid in total, compared with 4 litres or more for traditional PEG. The real advantage of low-volume preps is that much of what you drink is ordinary water or clear fluid rather than the medicine. Many people find that far easier.
The smallest option is not automatically the best. Effectiveness, your health conditions, and what you personally tolerate matter more. See low-volume options, compared.
Who should be cautious with which family
| Situation | Usually preferred | Usually used with caution or avoided |
|---|---|---|
| Chronic kidney disease, dialysis | PEG, often standard volume | Sodium phosphate (avoid). Magnesium-containing picosulfate and sulfate preps (caution, especially in advanced disease). |
| Heart failure | PEG | Preps that shift fluid and salts, such as sulfate and phosphate |
| G6PD deficiency | PEG without ascorbate | MoviPrep, Plenvu (ascorbate) |
| Phenylketonuria | Check the ingredients | Products containing aspartame |
| Difficulty swallowing | Liquid preps | Tablet preps such as Sutab |
| Pregnancy | Discuss individually | See pregnancy and coloscopy |
| Diabetes | Any, with a plan for medicines and sugar-containing fluids | See diabetes and bowel prep |
For more detail on kidney disease, see kidney disease and bowel preparation.
What to ask your clinician
- Which family is the prep you have prescribed, and why that one for me?
- Given my kidney function, heart, and other conditions, is there any prep I should avoid?
- How much extra clear fluid do I need to drink, and when?
- If I struggled with a prep last time, can we try a different family?
- Is the brand I bought abroad, or have at home from a previous test, an acceptable substitute? (Usually the answer is to use what was prescribed.)
Common worries, briefly addressed
Is Plenvu the same as SUPREP?
No. Plenvu is a PEG-based prep with ascorbate and sulfate. SUPREP is a sulfate-salt solution with no PEG. Both are low-volume and both are split-dose, but they work differently and have different cautions.
Is Plenvu the same as MoviPrep?
They are related. Both are PEG preps with ascorbate, from the same manufacturer. Plenvu is half the medicated volume (1 litre against 2 litres) and is more concentrated.
Is Plenvu low-volume or high-volume?
Low-volume. It is currently the lowest-volume PEG preparation.
What is high-volume PEG called?
The 4-litre PEG-electrolyte solutions: GoLYTELY, NuLYTELY, Colyte, GaviLyte, and TriLyte in the US, Klean-Prep in the UK and Europe, and PEG-Lyte in Canada.
What is an alternative to Picolax?
Within the same family, CitraFleet. In other families, MoviPrep or Plenvu (PEG), or Eziclen (sulfate). Your clinician will choose based on your health and your experience with past preps.
Can I swap my prescribed prep for a different brand I can get more easily?
Not without asking. The dosing schedule, the extra fluid, and the cautions differ between families. Call the unit first.
Sources
- U.S. Multi-Society Task Force on Colorectal Cancer: optimizing adequacy of bowel cleansing for colonoscopy
- European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy: bowel preparation for colonoscopy guideline (2019 update)
- British Society of Gastroenterology: guidance on bowel cleansing
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration: prescribing information for listed products; safety communication on oral sodium phosphate products
- UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency: summaries of product characteristics for listed products