Pilot randomized trial of efficacy and safety of yogic technique versus polyethylene glycol solution for bowel preparation in colonoscopy.

Background and Aims: The traditional yogic technique of shankha prakshalana (SP) has been known to cleanse the bowel, but its efficacy as a bowel preparation agent in colonoscopy has not been studied widely. We compared the efficacy and safety of SP with split-dose polyethylene glycol (PG) in bowel preparation for colonoscopy. Methods: Patients undergoing elective colonoscopy were randomized into 2 groups: PG group (n = 47) and SP group (n = 47). Patients in the PG group were given 2 liters of PG 3350 in a split-dose regimen. Patients in the SP group were administered 400 mL of lukewarm saline water followed by a set of 5 asanas (physical exercises) of SP, with each asana performed 8 times under the supervision of a certified yoga trainer (R.M.). This constituted 1 cycle, which was repeated 6 times (total intake of 2400 mL lukewarm saline water). The Boston Bowel Preparation Scale (BBPS) was used to assess the main outcome of the efficacy of bowel preparation. Results: A total of 94 patients were enrolled, with 47 in each study group. The mean BBPS for the whole colon in the SP group (8.15 ± 1.02) was higher than that in the PG group (7.55 ± 1.08; Conclusions: The traditional yogic technique of shankha prakshalana is an effective method for bowel preparation in colonoscopy, with overall better efficacy and safety, compared with the standard split-dose PG regimen. (Clinical trial registration number: CTRI/2020/07/026899.).