Amitiza® Plus GoLYTELY® (PEG) Versus Placebo Plus GoLYTELY® for Outpatient Colonoscopy Preparation

Phase 4

Completed

Conditions: Colonoscopy

Interventions: Drug: lubiprostone (Amitiza)
Drug: Placebo

Registration Number: NCT00645801

Lead Sponsor: Henry Ford Health System

Brief Summary: The primary objective is to compare the effectiveness and tolerance of the medication named lubiprostone plus a large volume liquid laxative versus placebo which is a look alike medication that has no effect such as a sugar pill plus a large volume liquid laxative as a bowel cleaning preparation for colonoscopy to see the colon better during the colonoscopy to identify abnormal growths such as polyps or colon cancer.

Colonoscopy is considered the best way to screen for colon cancer screening because you can visualize the colon directly and remove or biopsy abnormal growths. The limiting step in the procedure is the quality of the colon preparation prior to the procedure. Many patients do not tolerate large volumes of liquid used to prepare the colon. The purpose of the study is to improve the quality of the prep by adding a pill laxative medication before starting the large volume laxative to better see the colon. The other aim of the study is to try to reduce the amount of of liquid laxative the patient has to drink by giving a pill laxative before starting the liquid laxative.

Detailed Description: The study is a double blind placebo controlled study of lubiprostone in 4 doses vs look alike placebo in 4 doses before bowel preparation for outpatient screening, surveillance and diagnostic colonoscopy. Patients with severe underlying medical conditions were excluded. Patients with inflammatory bowel disease, frequent bowel movements and colonic resection were also excluded. Patients were randomized to one of two groups. The study was double blinded. The first group took lubiprostone 24 micrograms and the second group took look alike placebo in 4 divided doses right before starting the bowel prep with the last dose upon starting polyethylene glycol-electrolyte solution the evening before the colonoscopy.

All study patients were educated and instructed to observe for clear stool, which was defined as "watery consistency without any solid fecal material or dark liquid stools" before stopping the liquid bowel prep. Patients were instructed to return the unused PEG solution on the day of colonoscopy. After completing the preparation but before colonoscopy, patients were also required to fill a questionnaire to assess the tolerability of tablets and solution. This was measured on a 1-5 rating Likert scale (1) "Easy," 2) "Tolerable," 3) "Slightly Difficult," 4) "Extremely Difficult," and 5)"Unable to Finish" and was based on the patient's ability to swallow the liquid and each of 4 tablets. In addition, the pres- ence of symptoms of nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, chest pain, dizziness, and bloating was evaluated.

The primary endpoints was the endoscopist's evaluation of the preparation quality. All colonoscopies were performed by 3 endoscopists (with 85% of the procedures performed by principal investigator of the study, A.L.S.). Endo- scopists evaluated the quality of the colonoscopy prep- aration based on the previously validated Ottawa bowel preparation scale.5 This scale rates 3 sections of colon, rectosigmoid, mid, and right colon, on a 5-point scale (0-4) and a global 3-point rating (0-2) for overall colonic fluid. The total score ranges from 0-14; score of 0 being perfect and score of 14 indicating solid stool in each colon segment and lot of fluid.The secondary endpoint was to determine any reduction in the amount of PEG consumed in the lubiprostone group compared with the placebo group.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status: COMPLETED

Sex: All

Target Recruitment: 158

Inclusion Criteria

Subject is at least 18 years old
Subject is in good health
Subject is undergoing a screening, surveillance or diagnostic colonoscopy
Subject has a spontaneous bowel movement at least every 48 hours

Exclusion Criteria

Subject has renal insufficiency demonstrated by serum creatinine > 1.4mg/dL
Subject has Type 1 diabetes
Subject has past or present diagnosis of Congestive Heart Failure
Subject has past or present diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease
Subject had previous colon resection
Subject has a preexisting electrolyte abnormality
Subject has more than 3 spontaneous bowel movements daily

Study & Design

Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL

Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Ingested 4 tablets of lubiprostone in divided doses + 1 gallon of polyethylene glycol	lubiprostone (Amitiza)	First dose of lubiprostone 24 micrograms or placebo was administered 2 nights before colonoscopy and subsequent doses at breakfast, lunch, and dinner on the day before the procedure. Patients were on a clear liquid diet on the day before the procedure and were instructed to initiate drinking PEG (immediately after the last dose of lubiprostone) at 6 PM the evening before the colonoscopy and continued drinking the solution until at least 2 bowel movements were clear yellow or green. All study patients were educated and instructed to observe for clear stool, which was defined as "watery consistency without any solid fecal material or dark liquid stools." Patients were instructed to return the unused PEG solution on the day of colonoscopy. After completing the preparation but before colonoscopy, patients were also required to fill a questionnaire to assess the tolerability of tablets and solution.
Ingested 4 tablets of placebo in divided doses + 1 gallon of polyethylene glycol	Placebo	First dose of look alike placebo was administered 2 nights before colonoscopy and subsequent doses at breakfast, lunch, and dinner on the day before the procedure. Patients were on a clear liquid diet on the day before the procedure and were instructed to initiate drinking PEG (immediately after the last dose of lubiprostone) at 6 PM the evening before the colonoscopy and continued drinking the solution until at least 2 bowel movements were clear yellow or green. All study patients were educated and instructed to observe for clear stool, which was defined as "watery consistency without any solid fecal material or dark liquid stools." Patients were instructed to return the unused PEG solution on the day of colonoscopy. After completing the preparation but before colonoscopy, patients were also required to fill a questionnaire to assess the tolerability of tablets and solution.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Endoscopist Evaluation of Colon Cleanliness in the Lubiprostone Group vs the Placebo Group	within 12 hours of completing bowel prep	Endoscopists evaluated the quality of the colonoscopy preparation based on Ottawa bowel preparation scale. . The total score ranges from 0-14; score of 0 being perfect and score of 14 indicating solid stool in each colon segment and lot of fluid. Before using the scale for this trial, the endoscopists participated in a calibration exercise that involved 20 patients to ensure that they concurred on their interpretation of the scale.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Tolerability of the Colon Cleansing Group in the Lubiprostone Group vs the Placebo Group	done at the time of colonoscopy	After completing the colonoscopy prep patients were asked to assess tolerability of the prep using a 5 point Likert scale with 1 being easy and 5 being unable to complete the prep
Change in Volume of PEG From Beginning of Bowel Prep to That at Completion of the Colonoscopy Preparation in the Two Groups	amount of PEG at start of the study and that measured when the patient presented for their procedure.	Patients in the lubiprostone group and the placebo returned unused PEG after completing the prep for the colonoscopy. This was measured in liters and recorded.