Please recommend a stethoscope

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costanza

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Will start intern in July.
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drg puretone ti-lite is what i use. littmann cardiology iii is good too, basically the industry standard .
 
drg puretone cardiology ti-lite is what i use. littmann cardiology iii is good too, basically the industry standard.
 
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How did you get through med school without a stethoscope? :confused:
 
costanza said:
Will start intern in July.
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About 4 months ago my wife bought me a Littmann master cardiology black and it's fantastic. I'm a 2nd year resident and have had 2 previous stethoscopes including the Littmann cardiology, and the Littmann classic II. I can tell a real difference with the master cardiology black. Plus it looks kind of cool.
 
Do FP's use their adult stethescope for all their patients including the kids?
 
jeff2005 said:
Do FP's use their adult stethescope for all their patients including the kids?
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I have a Littmann Pediatric for the little kids.
 
jeff2005 said:
Do FP's use their adult stethescope for all their patients including the kids?
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I honestly don't think it makes that much of a difference and I wouldn't purchase a pediatric stethoscope. When you see newborns in the nursery, they will have stethoscopes there. In the office, you can get away with using an adult stethoscope, although some adults stethoscopes have pediatric adapters.
 
Stethoscope???

2-D Echo with bubble study followed by CT Chest, Ab, Pelvis.
 
Surprisingly, that "toy" stethoscope looks almost exactly like the ones that many nurses use, and probably works about as well. ;)

stethoscope-a.gif
 
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I have a philips cardiology. was told by a cardiologist that that's the one to get. same price as litmans. don't know if they still make them. and it comes with 3 removable bell/drum pieces for adult, peds, neonatal.
 
cali-ob said:
I have a philips cardiology. was told by a cardiologist that that's the one to get. same price as litmans. don't know if they still make them.
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They don't. One just sold for $1,000 on eBay, so they're obviously still in demand (link here ).

Correction: Apparently, that auction ended in an offer that was declined ($1,000 was the buy-it-now price).

At any rate, the old HP/Philips Rappaport-Spragues usually go for big bucks, even if it's not quite $1,000. This one was about the cheapest I've seen lately.
 
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Do you guys realize that the OP is already pretty close to finishing his residency? I'm sure he purchased a stethoscope by now (I would hope).
 
Shinken said:
Do you guys realize that the OP is already pretty close to finishing his residency? I'm sure he purchased a stethoscope by now (I would hope).
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Maybe you should PM Kodak1138 about that. He's the one who revived a two-year-old thread to make a joke about toy stethoscopes. :rolleyes:
 
Blue Dog said:
They don't. One just sold for $1,000 on eBay, so they're obviously still in demand (link here ).

Correction: Apparently, that auction ended in an offer that was declined ($1,000 was the buy-it-now price).

At any rate, the old HP/Philips Rappaport-Spragues usually go for big bucks, even if it's not quite $1,000. This one was about the cheapest I've seen lately.
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wow! Maybe I should sell mine! I could use an extra $1000;)
 
So it seems that Blue Dog and friends all like the Harvey Elite. According to the
http://www.forusdocs.com/reviews/Acoustic_Stethoscope_Review.htm, they recommend the Cardio III because of the cardio's efficency and ergonomics. However, when I look at the power spectra, they both pretty much look the same so I again confused. Also, does anyone use the Harvey Dlx? The Rep at our school is pushing it because it has brass and not steel tubing.
 
hmm... said:
According to the
http://www.forusdocs.com/reviews/Acoustic_Stethoscope_Review.htm, they recommend the Cardio III because of the cardio's efficency and ergonomics.
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A very well-done and comprehensive review...thanks for the link, I hadn't seen that yet.

I suspect that the Harvey Elite would've performed much better if the reviewers hadn't chosen to test it using the corrugated diaphragm. This diaphragm intentionally attenuates sounds in the upper and lower ranges, accentuating the midrange. It does not work nearly as well for general auscultation, IMO, as the flat diaphragm that also comes with the stethoscope. Their biggest complaint, that it was "inefficient," is almost certainly the result of their diaphragm choice.

Also interesting to note is that my "workhorse" stethoscope, the discontinued Littmann Cardiology I/II, would've scored higher than any other if not for the 5-point deduction given for "short tube." If they had tested a Cardiology II instead (essentially the same 'scope, with available longer tubing), it probably would've been their top pick. These are still available on eBay, for what it's worth.
 
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After losing my beloved Littman Cardio III, I replaced it with a cheapo ADC Classic and honestly, I hear the same stuff for $35 as I did with the $140 Littman...
 
This isnt dead yet?

Welch Allyn, Elite or DLX if you want to spend money
ADC if you dont want to spend money
Littmann if you don't want to hear what you are supposed to.
 
J-Rad said:
You may find that this thread, with its last post in 2004, might not elicit too many responses from the previous posters. I agree that get the scope that you hear the best with. I happen to think that dual lumen (and most these days hide both lumens inside one tube a la Littman Cardiology III) scopes are better than single lumen (unfortunately, most pedi scopes). My Littman Cardiology III served me well through med school, residency and now the beginning of my fellowship. I used the pediatric diaphragm and think the loss of a bell is overrated. I was able to use my Littman on NICU babies by angling the head a little and I could hear as much as anyone using a neo or pedi scope. I think these days the more meaningful question to ask is whether to buy an electronic scope or not. If your hearing is not good, or you just have trouble hearing no matter what (despite good hearing) I would look into an amplified scope. The Littman 3000 is supposed to be quite good.
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Just being lazy and copying a response I made to a similar question in the Peds boards. Really, the brand doesn't matter that much, and I wonder if the brand differences that people perceive is related to the earpieces (where significant sound degredation can occur without proper fit).
 
ok sorry to bump such an old thread, but it seems technology has come far in the last few years. Can anyone comment on their use (within the past few years) on an electronic stethoscope? I am currently using my littmann Classic II SE. I love technology and am tempted to buy one. Is it worth the price? Which one have you used, and how do you rate it? Oh and about what did you pay for it? thanks
 
Technology hasn't come that far with stethoscopes. Some of the super ones that sell for a ton of money are 30 years old...
 
discodoctor said:
ok sorry to bump such an old thread, but it seems technology has come far in the last few years. Can anyone comment on their use (within the past few years) on an electronic stethoscope? I am currently using my littmann Classic II SE. I love technology and am tempted to buy one. Is it worth the price? Which one have you used, and how do you rate it? Oh and about what did you pay for it? thanks
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I have used the litman 3200 and the ADC scope. Don't waste your money. I tried both for a research project where I was recording sounds which is why I picked these 2 scopes.

I really didn't like the 3200 the ADC was a bit better but not much. In both, the sounds were terribly muffled. The major problem is that these pick up an absolute ton of ambient noise. If the patient moves at all you pick up the ruffling of the clothes. Forget if they are in any respiratory distress. You can't hear the heart sounds to save your life. In any setting other than a quiet room that scope is going to be useless. This pretty much precludes their utility in the hospital or the ED.

I had my littmann cardiology III with me at all times. I would listen with the electronic scopes and then with the regular littmann. The littmann outperformed them everytime with the rare exception of S3s.

The idea of these scopes is a good one just the technology has not caught up quick enough so that they are as useful as a normal non-electronic scope. If you are going to spend the money, get a good quality non-electronic scope.
 
Instatewaiter said:
I have used the litman 3200 and the ADC scope. Don't waste your money. I tried both for a research project where I was recording sounds which is why I picked these 2 scopes.

I really didn't like the 3200 the ADC was a bit better but not much. In both, the sounds were terribly muffled. The major problem is that these pick up an absolute ton of ambient noise. If the patient moves at all you pick up the ruffling of the clothes. Forget if they are in any respiratory distress. You can't hear the heart sounds to save your life. In any setting other than a quiet room that scope is going to be useless. This pretty much precludes their utility in the hospital or the ED.

I had my littmann cardiology III with me at all times. I would listen with the electronic scopes and then with the regular littmann. The littmann outperformed them everytime with the rare exception of S3s.

The idea of these scopes is a good one just the technology has not caught up quick enough so that they are as useful as a normal non-electronic scope. If you are going to spend the money, get a good quality non-electronic scope.
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Great info! I guess this is why I didn't see anyone using them in my hospital.
 
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