A Novel Stethoscope In COVID 19 Times

A Novel Stethoscope In COVID 19 Times

Prachi Agrawal
Maulana Azad Medical College And Associated Hospitals, New Delhi, India

Need of an innovation: In the era of the ongoing pandemic, the existing stethoscope has a lot of limitations to its use. They are indispensable part of patient care; however the binaural stethoscope is practically impossible to use in the PPE while digital stethoscopes are expensive, need expertise and are not easily available in a resource-limited set-up. With this innovation we seek to offer novel solution to this problem. We devised a portable digital stethoscope that can record auscultatory sounds without the need for an earpiece, simultaneously offering the advantage of recording and reproducing the same with the help of a (1) stethoscope, (2) silicone tubing, (3) earphones with a microphone and 3.5 mm stereo plug and (4) mobile phone with a sound recording function. We removed the earpiece, attached a silicone tube of 5 cm length and 6mm inner diameter to it and inserted a condenser microphone on the other end of the tube to ensure a proper seal. The 3.5mm stereo plug on the other end of the earphones was connected to the mobile, thus facilitating the recording of the auscultatory sounds. This stethoscope can be used for the clinical assessment of COVID-19-infected patients with multiple comorbities needing clinical evaluation of their cardiac and respiratory function thus enabling better patient assessment and care. This innovation has its utility in all domains of medical care be it the operating room, intensive care or patients needing post-surgical care. This small modification has wide implications, is cost effective and has its utility in all setups of medical care. Because it is rightly said, this global pandemic is a war, and small inventions and modification like these can make a big difference.