OBJECTIVES In recent years, the use and portability of ultrasound has threatened the utility of the stethoscope, with many debating and even advocating its replacement. The authors set out to assess opinions in this regard among faculty within a medical school and specifically within an anatomy department where ultrasound is incorporated into the curriculum from the first term. METHODS A deba...

Until 25 years ago the only possible way of communicating with the "intrauterine" inmate apart from the fetal movements observed by the mother herself, was by auscultation of the fetal heart beats with a simple stethoscope. The following statement made by the two English pediatricians DOBBS and GAIRDNER in 1966 sums up the situation [23]. "Up to now the formidable inaccessibility of the human f...

BACKGROUND Many of the healthcare associated infections (HCAIs) are transmitted by healthcare workers' hands, which actively contributes to transferring pathogens from patient to patient and within the healthcare environment. Hand hygiene is the easiest and cheapest method for preventing HCAIs. The article presents the compliance with hygiene procedures in a group of medical students of the Wro...

T^OTAL irregularity of the pulse was known to the ¦* ancients, but the relationship of the pulse to the heart beat was often debated; indeed, Abercromby (1685) said that "the origin of the pulse is as mysterious as the source of the Nile". These uncertainties were abolished after Laennec (1816) had introduced the stethoscope and auscultation, when the audible rhythm of the heart and palpation o...

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is recognized as the leading cause of mortality throughout the world. About one-third of global mortality is attributable to CVD. In addition to clinical presentation, specific clinical exam findings can assist in treating and preventing CVD. CVD may initially manifest as pulmonary pathology, and thus, accurate cardiopulmonary auscultation is paramount to establishi...

Rural areas in developing countries are characterized by lack of resources, low population density, and scarcity of communications infrastructure. These circumstances make it difficult to provide appropriate health-care services. This paper explains research results achieved by Enlace Hispano Americano de Salud - Hispano American Health Link (EHAS) and how they have contributed to improve healt...

Three children are described in whom an unusual heart murmur was intermittently audible in the same room without a stethoscope. Subsequent investigations disclosed mitral valve prolapse in all three patients.

Asthma is the most common chronic illness among children. The skills required to diagnose it make it an even greater concern. In this work, we present a child-friendly wearable device, which allows in-home diagnosis of asthma. The device acquires simultaneous measurements from multiple stethoscopes. The recordings are then sent to a specialist who uses assistive diagnosis algorithms that enable...

A stethoscope is an instrument used for auscultations to convey heart sounds as well sounds in the other parts of the body. However, traditional stethoscopes are restricted only to audio representation of such sounds and the diagnosis depends on the expertise of the doctor. This project is an attempt to develop an Embedded Stethoscope to capture heart sounds which offers better noise cancellati...