Abstract:Objective To evaluate the effect of different ratios of simethicone combined with various doses of sodium bicarbonate on improving image clarity during gastroscopy.Methods A prospective, randomized, double-blind controlled study was conducted on 120 patients undergoing routine gastroscopy at Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University from November to December 2024. Patients were randomly assigned to 4 groups (n=30 each) using a random number table. Before gastroscopy, patients received 400 mg simethicone alone (Group A), 400 mg simethicone plus 1.0 g sodium bicarbonate (Group B), 400 mg simethicone plus 1.6 g sodium bicarbonate (Group C), and 400 mg simethicone plus 2.0 g sodium bicarbonate (Group D), respectively. Visual field clarity, examination duration, and adverse reactions were compared among the four groups.Results The number of patients with excellent visual field clarity was 4 (13.3%) in Group A, 10 (33.3%) in Group B, 13 (43.3%) in Group C, and 18 (60.0%) in Group D. The proportion of patients with excellent visual field clarity was significantly higher, and the proportion with good clarity was significantly lower in Group D than in Group A (χ2≈17.7, P<0.05). No significant difference was found in gastroscopy duration among the four groups [(412±46) s, (402±53) s, (398±47) s, (392±36) s; F=1.01, P>0.05]. No severe adverse reactions occurred in any group.Conclusion Oral simethicone emulsion combined with sodium bicarbonate before gastroscopy can prevent flocculation. Gastric mucosal clarity tends to improve gradually with increasing sodium bicarbonate dose. Oral administration of 400 mg simethicone plus 2.0 g sodium bicarbonate achieves superior endoscopic image clarity.