Symbolic of modern medical care, the stethoscope is easily one of the most identified tools used by today's medical professionals. Whether shopping for your first stethoscope, upgrading to a more advanced model or outfitting an entire practice, rest assured Henry Schein Medical has exactly what you are looking for.
Our diverse range of stethoscope models encompasses pediatric and adult Sprague Rappaport stethoscopes, Clinician Stethoscopes, 2-head teaching stethoscopes, nursing stethoscopes, and cardiology stethoscopes. Each instrument undergoes rigorous testing and meticulous quality control, ensuring optimal performance. Discover the difference they can make in your diagnostic capabilities, enhancing your ability to provide the highest level of care to your patients.
At Henry Schein, we understand the dynamic and ever-evolving health care landscape. That's why we remain committed to constant innovation and continuous improvement, staying at the forefront of auscultation technology.
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Combination adult-size chest piece is precisely machined to exacting tolerances from surgical stainless steel for outstanding performance and rugged durability. Available in 3 striking colors for departmental coding or personal identification, scope ID tag included.
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The Harvey Elite offers updated styling along with the superior comfort and auscultation capabilities that cardiologists have come to rely on. It is equipped with dual-bore, non-latex tubing that creates two uninterrupted sound channels and works with the optimally weighted, rugged, and stainless steel chestpieces. In addition, Elite's diaphragm is designed to accentuate important sounds, enabling you to listen to cardiac, pulmonary, and vascular sounds.
The 3M™ Littmann® Classic III™ Stethoscope is the latest version of the stethoscope that helps millions of medical professionals achieve their best. The Classic III stethoscope offers high acoustic sensitivity for exceptional performance, plus a versatile two-sided chestpiece with tunable diaphragms. The Classic III stethoscope is used by students and medical professionals alike to identify, listen to, and study heart, lung, and other body sounds for physical assessment, patient monitoring, and diagnosis.
Sturdy and refined, the Littmann Cardiology IV helps isolate subtle sounds, hard-to-hear sounds and small nuances including aortic stenosis, S3 gallop murmurs and faint pulmonary anomalies. Useful in critical care and challenging environments such as the ED, ICU, Cardiac ICU, step-down unit and other dynamic locations.
Durability, versatility, comfort, and ease of use. Though these are the baseline desirable characteristics for any stethoscope, there's often much more to consider when purchasing this essential piece of medical equipment.
Where will you be using your stethoscope? Is the room noisy, quiet, or a mixture of both? Having a strong acoustic seal and professional level acoustic properties can make a big difference in how much you hear as well as the quality of what you hear.
What will your stethoscope be used for? Will its primary use be a diagnostics tool, or will it also be used for patient monitoring? Blood pressure measurements and basic physical assessments may point to a lighter weight model while heart and lung examinations requiring identification of more subtle sounds may call for more advanced features and an upgraded product line. Many stethoscopes are designed with a specialty in mind like cardiology or pediatrics. Always check the manufacturer's product description to ensure the stethoscope meets your intended specifications.
How important is comfort? When a stethoscope is draped around the neck or tucked into your pocket, how weighty is it? Are the ear tips hard or soft? Our ear canals are not uniform. Always ensure ear tips correctly conform to your ears for maximum sound performance.
Do you require a tunable diaphragm? Brands like Littmann® offer several models for greater flexibility. Tunable diaphragms can be accessed on either side of the chestpiece or via conversion of the smaller side to an open bell.
Are you a clinician or teaching professional who needs more amplification or recording options? You may benefit from using an electronic stethoscope model. When combined with an app, electronic stethoscopes help to provide a vehicle for recording and analyzing sounds as well as sharing files when seeking a second opinion.
We've come a long way since the 1816 invention of the stethoscope by René Laennec. Born from the desire for modesty, a simple tube made from a sheet of paper allowed the doctor to listen to the heart without directly placing his ear upon the chest. In the years since, we've morphed from wooden ear horns to flexible tubing, plastic diaphragms, and binaural listening; eventually landing on the modern-day stethoscope design.
The seemingly simple stethoscope device utilizes a diaphragm, typically placed on a patient's chest, which carries the sound of the heart through to the earpieces. The instrument is also helpful in monitoring lung and intestinal functions. However, while stethoscopes now come in a wide range of models and styles, they don't all share the same functionality and purpose.
Uniquely designed to capture the sound waves created by a beating heart, expanding lungs, or a gurgling stomach, the acoustic stethoscope, through a series of components, helps to amplify sounds not typically heard by the exposed ear. The metal chest piece acts as a conduit to the vibrations, channeling the sound waves through rubber tubing until it reaches the metal earpiece. The tubing itself helps to contain the waves and amplify the sound. Adjustments to the chestpiece inclusive of the diaphragm and bell, can help tune the sound for added clarity.
As clinicians continue to seek new ways to improve patient outcomes, technological upgrades become more prevalent. Because the acoustic stethoscope provides a mixture of low and high frequency sounds, perfecting their usage can take several years. However, electronic stethoscopes remove some of the guesswork by further amplifying sounds, increasing volume, and reducing excess background noise. Vibrations are translated to electric signals and then optimized for clarity. Some models also feature custom apps that help with visualization of the audio data.
Electronic stethoscopes do come with a small disadvantage. Unlike with traditional stethoscopes, your electronic or digital stethoscope will require one AA alkaline, lithium, or NiMH battery (dependent on brand and model). Careful monitoring of battery life can help to ensure your stethoscope functions accurately when and where you need it most.
The stethoscope was invented in 1816 by French physician René Laennec. Laennec needed a way to examine a female patient's chest without having to place his ear directly on her skin. He rolled up a long piece of paper into a tube and used that to listen to her heartbeat. Laennec was amazed at how much better he could hear the patient's heart sounds using the tube than he could by placing his ear directly against her chest. He called his invention a "stethoscope," a combination of the Greek words stethos (chest) and skopein (to view or see).
The first stethoscopes were simple wooden tubes, but over the years, they have evolved in design to become more sophisticated and effective. One of the most important advances in stethoscope design was the invention of the binaural stethoscope in 1851. The binaural stethoscope has two earpieces, which allows the health care professional to hear the patient's sounds more clearly.
Another important advance in stethoscope design was the invention of the diaphragm in the late 19th century. The diaphragm is a thin, circular piece of material that is placed on one side of the chest piece. The diaphragm helps to amplify the patient's heart and lung sounds, making them easier to hear.
Today, stethoscopes are essential tools for health care professionals of all kinds. They are used to diagnose and monitor a wide range of medical conditions, including heart failure, pneumonia, and asthma.
Key milestones in the history of the stethoscope:
Stethoscopes work by amplifying the sounds of the body, such as the heartbeat and breathing. When the diaphragm of a stethoscope is placed on a patient's skin, it vibrates in response to the sounds produced by the body. These vibrations are transmitted through the tubing to the listener's ears, where they are amplified.
The bell of a stethoscope can also be used to listen to body sounds. When the bell is placed on the skin, the vibrations of the skin are directly transmitted to the listener's ears.
This allows health care professionals to hear these sounds more clearly and identify any abnormalities. health care professionals can analyze the amplified sounds of the body to gather crucial diagnostic information. For example, a doctor can listen to a patient's heartbeat to identify any abnormalities, such as a heart murmur. A doctor can also listen to a patient's breathing to identify any problems with the lungs, such as pneumonia.
Stethoscopes have two main parts: the chest piece and the earpieces. The chest piece is placed on the patient's body and collects sound waves. These sound waves are transmitted through the tubing to the earpieces, where they are amplified and made audible to the health care professional.
The chest piece of a stethoscope typically has two sides: a bell and a diaphragm. The bell is used to listen to low-pitched sounds, such as heart murmurs and lung crackles. The diaphragm is used to listen to high-pitched sounds, such as heartbeats and lung wheezes.
When the chest piece is placed on the patient's body, the bell or diaphragm vibrates in response to the sound waves. These vibrations are transmitted through the tubing to the earpieces, where they are converted back into audible sounds.
Different types of stethoscopes are designed for different purposes. Some of the most common types of specialty stethoscopes include: