Use of Simethicone in Endoscopy

FIGURE 11.1 Elimination of foam during colonoscopy by use of simethicone (PDMS-hydrophobed silica antifoam, (a) Endoscopic view showing foam, (b) View after introduction of simethicone using the hiopsy channel of colonoscope. (With kind permission of Springer Science+Business Media Dis. Colon Rectum, 38, 1995,1007, Parikh, V.A., Khanduja, K.S.) 

Conventional endoscopy is unable to satisfactorily access the small bowel. The relatively new technique of capsule endoscopy is, however, finding application in that context. In this technique, the patient swallows a small wireless camera that transmits images to sensors secured to the abdominal wall. There appears to be little agreement about preparatory treatment of the small bowel with simethicone before the use of capsule endoscopy. A search through relevant databases revealed six controlled trials favoring such treatment with respect to alternatives [31-36] and only two indicating a preference for alternative treatments [37,38]. 

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