Stethoscope is an acoustic medical equipment for auscultation or listening to the internal sound of animals or human body. It usually has a small disc resonator placed against the skin and one or two tubes connected to two earpieces. Stethoscope can be used to listen to the sound of the heart, lungs or intestines, as well as the blood flow in arteries and veins. Combined with manual sphygmomanometer, it is usually used to measure blood pressure.

Less commonly, a "mechanical Stethoscope" equipped with a rod-shaped chest piece is used to listen to the internal sound of the machine (for example, the sound and vibration of worn ball bearings), for example, to diagnose whether the car engine is faulty by hearing the sound. Internal parts. Stethoscope can also be used to check whether the scientific vacuum chamber leaks and other small-scale acoustic monitoring tasks.

A stethoscope is a stethoscope that enhances the sound of auscultation.

The stethoscope was invented by Ren é Laennec in France in 1816 by nekel fender marades hospital in Paris. It consists of a wooden tube, which is single ear. Laennec invented the stethoscope because he didn't want to put his ears directly on a woman's chest to listen to her heart. : 186 he observed that a roll of paper placed between the patient's chest and ears can amplify the heart sound without physical contact. Laennec's device is similar to an ordinary hearing aid, which is a historical form of hearing aid. In fact, his invention is almost the same in structure and function as the trumpet, which is usually called "microphone". Laennec calls his device "stetho + - scope," or "thoracoscopy," and he calls its use "intermediate auscultation," because it's auscultation through a tool between the patient's body and the doctor's ear. Today, the word auscultation means all that listen, speak or listen The first bendable stethoscope of any form may have been a binaural device, which did not clearly describe the joint in 1829. In 1840, Golding bird described the stethoscope hose he had been using. Byrd was the first to publish a description of the stethoscope, but in his paper he pointed out that there was an earlier design (which he thought was useless), which he called the snake ear trumpet. Byrd's stethoscope has only one earpiece.

In 1851, Arthur leard, an Irish doctor, invented the binaural stethoscope, and in 1852, George Philip camann perfected the design of the stethoscope instrument (using binaural) for commercial production, and later became the standard. Cammann also wrote a major paper on auscultation, which was made possible by the delicate binaural stethoscope. By 1873, there was a description of a differential stethoscope that could be connected to slightly different locations to produce a slight stereo effect, although this was not a standard tool in clinical practice.

Somerville Scott Alison described his stethoscope at the Royal Society in 1858. The stethoscope has two separate bells that allow the user to listen to and compare sounds from two discrete locations. This is used to study the certainty of binaural hearing and auditory processing, so as to improve the knowledge of sound location, and ultimately lead to the understanding of binaural fusion.

According to jacalyn Duffin, a medical historian, the invention of stethoscope marks an important step in the redefinition of disease, which has changed from a bunch of symptoms to current diseases. Even without obvious symptoms, it has become a problem of the anatomical system. Duffin believes that this re conceptualization happened to some extent because there was no non lethal tool for studying internal anatomy before stethoscope.

Rappaport and Sprague designed a new stethoscope in 1940s, which became the standard for measuring other stethoscopes. It consists of two sides, one side for respiratory system and the other for cardiovascular system. Rappaport Sprague was later made by HP. HP's medical products division was formed as part of Agilent Technologies and later changed to Agilent healthcare. Agilent healthcare was acquired by Philips, then Philips healthcare systems, and then the original $300 Rappaport Sprague stethoscope in a walnut box was finally abandoned. In 2004, there was also Philips (made by AndroMed in Montreal, Canada) model of electronic stethoscope. The Rappaport Sprague stethoscope is thick and short (18-24 inches (46-61 cm)), and its outdated appearance can be identified by two large independent latex rubber tubes, which are connected with a pair of exposed leaf spring connected with a pair of opposite F-shaped chrome plated brass double ear tubes, with a double head chest piece.

Stethoscope is a symbol of healthcare professionals. Often seen or depicted healthcare providers wearing stethoscopes around their necks. A 2012 research paper claimed that stethoscope had the highest positive impact on the trustworthiness seen by practitioners compared to other medical devices.

There are different opinions on the practicability of stethoscope in clinical practice. Research has shown that auscultation skills (that is, the ability to make a diagnosis based on the sound heard through a stethoscope) have declined for some time, so some medical educators are trying to reconstruct it.

In general practice, traditional blood pressure measurement using mechanical sphygmomanometer with inflatable cuff and stethoscope is gradually replaced by automatic sphygmomanometer.

The stethoscope is usually equipped with a rubber earpiece, which helps to improve comfort and form a seal with the ear, thus improving the acoustic function of the device. The stethoscope can be modified by replacing the standard handset with a molded version to improve comfort and sound delivery. The molded earpiece can be cast by the audience or made from the kit by the stethoscope user.