Effect of simethicone on visualization quality and capsule transit time during video capsule endoscopy in healthy dogs.

BACKGROUND: Simethicone enhances visualization quality (VQ) during video capsule endoscopy (VCE) in humans, but its effects on VQ and capsule transit time (CTT) in dogs remain unclear. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: Evaluate the effects of simethicone on VQ and CTT in dogs undergoing VCE. ANIMALS: Fifteen client-owned healthy dogs weighing 3-10 kg. METHODS: Prospective, blinded, randomized crossover study. Each dog underwent VCE twice: once with 20 mg (1 mL) simethicone administered 30 minutes before capsule ingestion, and once with 1 mL normal saline as a control. Visualization quality was assessed based on the proportion of mucosa visualized (variable 1), the degree of obscuration by bubbles, debris, blood, or bile (variable 2), and their average (variable 3). Capsule transit time, including gastric transit time (GTT) and small bowel transit time (SBTT), and incomplete study rates also were evaluated. RESULTS: Simethicone significantly improved VQ in the entire small bowel, especially in the proximal segment (P < .05 for all variables). However, no significant differences were observed between protocols in the distal small bowel and stomach. Gastric transit time and SBTT also were not significantly different between protocols. The risk of incomplete studies was not significantly affected by protocol, sex, body weight, or age. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Simethicone had region-specific effects on VQ in dogs undergoing VCE, specifically enhancing VQ in the small intestine. These findings provide preliminary evidence of a potential role for simethicone in improving small bowel VQ.