Stethoscope: Meaning, Types, and Uses

The stethoscope is a simple medical device that enables the user to listen to the internal sounds of an animal or human body. The instrument stethoscope is widely used by doctors, healthcare providers, and physicians in the medical field. It has a small disc-shaped resonator placed against the human or animal body and two pieces connected to earpieces.

French physician R.T.H. Laennec invented the stethoscope in 1816. Before the invention of the stethoscope, doctors used to place their ears on the patient's chest to know the cause. With the invention of the stethoscope, it became easy for doctors to listen to the body's internal sounds and examine patients effectively.

Previously, the device was just a simple tube, but it has evolved remarkably over the years. Modern stethoscopes are highly advanced and extremely sensitive, and it keeps on improving. The electronic stethoscope is mainly used by cardiologists. The electronic stethoscope is an advanced-level stethoscope that comes with amazing benefits and uses.

Factors related to Stethoscope Price

There are various stethoscopes available in the market which are of different prices. The price of the stethoscope depends on many factors such as the brand of the stethoscope, features of the stethoscope, type of stethoscopes, their size and shape, durability, etc.

The various types of stethoscopes available in the market are as follows:

• Traditional Acoustic:

The stethoscope is an acoustic medical device for listening to the internal sounds of the body. It consisted of a wooden tube and was monaural. The function of this traditional acoustic stethoscope has three main components, as discussed below:-

• Chest Piece
• Ear Pieces
• Tubing

• Amplifying:

The various electronic stethoscopes available in the market have an audio output signal which, through the use of a stereo, can allow the audio output collected by the stethoscope to be transmitted to the connected software application. There is an electronic stethoscope that provides a visual output of the heart rate.

• Digitizing Stethoscope:

The name was given to some stethoscopes as 'Digitizing stethoscope" because they convert the audio sound to a digital signal.

Major Uses of Stethoscope:

The stethoscope is a medical instrument that is a significant invention in history. It has solved many problems for doctors while examining a patient. The stethoscope is a crucial medical device that all doctors in the medical field widely use. Some of the main uses of the stethoscopes are discussed below:

• In past years, before the invention of the stethoscope, it was difficult to examine patients as doctors, healthcare providers, or physicians had to place their ears on the chest of the patient. It was more difficult for women patients as it was uncomfortable for them. The invention of the stethoscope has eased the examination process over the century.
• The stethoscope permits the patient to examine a patient's cardiac, respiratory, and intestinal state.
• The stethoscope is used by various healthcare professionals routinely to examine the patient's heart, lungs, and intestines to evaluate the frequency, duration, number, intensity, and quality of sounds.
• The stethoscope is important to listen to the heart to examine the patient and diagnose different diseases based on what the doctor hears from the stethoscope.
• With amplified sounds, any heart, lungs, and respiratory system diseases can be diagnosed much more easily and reliably.
• The stethoscope is also used on pregnant women during pregnancy to listen to the baby's heartbeat.
• The diaphragm of the stethoscope functions much like a human eardrum.
• The stethoscope can be used to listen to a variety of sounds to assist with the examination of the patient to detect the disease.
• The stethoscope is also used in association with a sphygmomanometer to assess blood pressure by listening to blood flow sounds.
• Also, there are various uses of electronic stethoscopes such as enhanced frequency range, ambient noise reduction, amplified sound quality, etc.