{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,7]],"date-time":"2026-05-07T06:15:18Z","timestamp":1778134518649,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":15,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,7]],"date-time":"2026-05-07T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1778112000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Med."],"abstract":"<jats:p>Inadequate bowel preparation remains a major barrier to high-quality colonoscopy, with taste aversion representing a common yet under-recognized contributor to poor tolerability of the bowel preparation. Current strategies primarily aim to improve palatability through formulation changes or dosing regimens. This paper proposes a novel, hypothesis-driven approach: transient pharmacologic suppression of gustatory perception using topical oral lidocaine to reduce the perceived unpleasantness of bowel preparation solutions. The concept arises from a serendipitous clinical observation in which tongue-focused lidocaine application enabled successful oral intake in a patient with repeated prior intolerance. By targeting taste perception directly rather than modifying the preparation itself, this approach may offer a complementary strategy for selected patients. Further evaluation is required to assess feasibility, safety, and clinical effectiveness.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fmed.2026.1803366","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,7]],"date-time":"2026-05-07T05:40:38Z","timestamp":1778132438000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Taste aversion as an under-recognized determinant of bowel preparation quality"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Mohammed","family":"Abdulrasak","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University","place":["Malm\u00f6, Sweden"]},{"name":"Department of Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Sk\u00e5ne University Hospital","place":["Malm\u00f6, Sweden"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,7]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1685","DOI":"10.3748\/wjg.v29.i11.1685","article-title":"Factors affecting the quality of bowel preparation for colonoscopy in hard-to-prepare patients: evidence from the literature","volume":"29","author":"Shahini","year":"2023","journal-title":"World J Gastroenterol"},{"key":"ref2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"4","DOI":"10.21037\/tgh.2020.02.13","article-title":"Predictors of poor bowel preparations and colonoscopy cancellations in inpatient colonoscopies, a single center retrospective study","volume":"7","author":"Agrawal","year":"2021","journal-title":"Transl Gastroenterol Hepatol"},{"key":"ref3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"63","DOI":"10.3390\/medicina62010063","article-title":"Quality of bowel preparation in the general population","volume":"62","author":"Radas","year":"2025","journal-title":"Medicina"},{"key":"ref4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"64","DOI":"10.4274\/tjcd.galenos.2023.2022-12-2","article-title":"Comparison of patients\u2019 compliances, tolerances, and experiences of different colonoscopic bowel preparation agents: a prospective observational study","volume":"33","author":"Alkan","year":"2023","journal-title":"Turk J Colorectal Dis"},{"key":"ref5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"2741","DOI":"10.3748\/wjg.v20.i11.2741","article-title":"What is the best strategy for successful bowel preparation under special conditions?","volume":"20","author":"Lim","year":"2014","journal-title":"World J Gastroenterol"},{"key":"ref6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"3482","DOI":"10.1007\/s10620-015-3761-2","article-title":"Predictors of inadequate inpatient colonoscopy preparation and its association with hospital length of stay and costs","volume":"60","author":"Yadlapati","year":"2015","journal-title":"Dig Dis Sci"},{"key":"ref7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1217","DOI":"10.1177\/2050640620953224","article-title":"Can adjuncts to bowel preparation for colonoscopy improve patient experience and result in superior bowel cleanliness? A systematic review and Meta-analysis","volume":"8","author":"Kamran","year":"2020","journal-title":"United European Gastroenterol J"},{"key":"ref8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"598","DOI":"10.1016\/j.crfs.2022.02.004","article-title":"The tongue map and the spatial modulation of taste perception","volume":"5","author":"Spence","year":"2022","journal-title":"Curr Res Food Sci"},{"key":"ref9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1704","DOI":"10.1002\/lary.23899","article-title":"The effects of topical anesthetic on swallowing during nasoendoscopy","volume":"123","author":"Lester","year":"2013","journal-title":"Laryngoscope"},{"key":"ref10","first-page":"1413","article-title":"Effect of lidocaine gargling on taste perception","volume":"41","author":"Mukai","year":"2014","journal-title":"Gan To Kagaku Ryoho"},{"key":"ref11","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1136\/gutjnl-2023-330396","article-title":"British Society of Gastroenterology guidelines on sedation in gastrointestinal endoscopy","volume":"73","author":"Sidhu","year":"2023","journal-title":"Gut"},{"key":"ref12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"393","DOI":"10.1093\/chemse\/bji034","article-title":"The influence of chemical gustatory stimuli and Oral Anaesthesia on healthy human pharyngeal swallowing","volume":"30","author":"Chee","year":"2005","journal-title":"Chem Senses"},{"key":"ref13","volume-title":"Lidocaine Topical Spray: Dosing and Prescribing Information","year":""},{"key":"ref14","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e24947","DOI":"10.1097\/md.0000000000024947","article-title":"Antiemetics improve the tolerance of polyethylene glycol for colonoscopy preparation","volume":"100","author":"Yan","year":"2021","journal-title":"Medicine"},{"key":"ref15","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"368504251412984","DOI":"10.1177\/00368504251412984","article-title":"Strategies to optimize bowel preparation quality for colonoscopy in individuals","volume":"109","author":"Wang","year":"2026","journal-title":"Sci Prog"}],"container-title":["Frontiers in Medicine"],"original-title":[],"link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fmed.2026.1803366\/full","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,7]],"date-time":"2026-05-07T05:40:38Z","timestamp":1778132438000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.frontiersin.org\/articles\/10.3389\/fmed.2026.1803366\/full"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,7]]},"references-count":15,"alternative-id":["10.3389\/fmed.2026.1803366"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/fmed.2026.1803366","relation":{},"ISSN":["2296-858X"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2296-858X","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,7]]},"article-number":"1803366"}}