INTRODUCTION Emergency medicine residents use simulation training for many reasons, such as gaining experience with critically ill patients and becoming familiar with disease processes. Residents frequently criticize simulation training using current high-fidelity mannequins due to the poor quality of physical exam findings present, such as auscultatory findings, as it may lead them down an alt...

BACKGROUND Stethoscope diaphragms have been shown to harbor potentially pathogenic bacteria. OBJECTIVES To assess bacterial contamination on the diaphragm and under the plastic rim that secures the diaphragm of stethoscopes of physicians, nurses, medical students, and house staff in an intensive care unit and a general medical ward of a large university hospital. Also to compare the effective...

In this paper, we propose a design and implementation of a Web-Based remote digital stethoscope that integrates current software, hardware interface devices, PC, and Internet into the remotely operated virtual instrumentation. The interface devices of this prototype system consist of a traditional stethoscope, a microphone, a sound card, and a headphone. In the network hardware, we use power li...

BACKGROUND Stethoscopes are widely used by doctors and nurses. Poor stethoscope hygiene is a potential source of nosocomial infection. This study aimed to propose an innovative solution, based on the latest advances in ultraviolet (UV) light-emitting diodes (LEDs), for disinfecting stethoscope membranes automatically and efficiently. METHODS Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomona...

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...

To the Editor:—We read with interest the case report by Williams et al. of an accidental middle turbinectomy during nasotracheal intubation. Though the authors stated it as being the first case, there have been some earlier reports on middle turbinectomy. Prewarming of endotracheal tube (ETT) to soften, lubricating of the ETT, and using a vasoconstrictor have been recommended to reduce trauma d...