A Stethoscope

The stethoscope is a medical device for auscultation, or listening to internal sounds of an animal or
human body. It typically has a small disc-shaped resonator that is placed against the skin, with either
one or two tubes connected to two earpieces. A stethoscope can be used to listen to the sounds made
by the heart, lungs or intestines, as well as blood flow in arteries and veins. In combination with a
manual sphygmomanometer, it is commonly used when measuring blood pressure.

A stethoscope is a medical instrument used by medical professionals to listen to sounds produced in the
body, primarily in the heart or lungs. It is also used to listen to blood vessels and bowel sounds.

WORKING PRINCIPLE

The stethoscope works on the principle of reflection of sound, the vibration causes a diaphragm to
vibrate. The diaphragm vibrates when sound occurs. These high-frequency sounds travel up the hollow
plastic tubing into hollow metal earpieces and to the doctor's ears.

We have known from the definition above that stethoscope is a device normally used by medical
practitioners to listen to the sound that is coming out internally from human body or an animal majorly
placed at the chest.
Whenever a medical practitioners place a stethoscope diaphragm on a chest of a patient, a vibration will
occur at the flat surface of the stethoscope which is as result of sound waves that is being generated from
the patient’s body. The vibration picked by the diaphragm is being protected externally in other to prevent
sound loss and thereby channeled through the tube to a specific direction.
Inside the tube, a multiple reflection tends to occurs as a result of wave collision within the wall of the
tube. And this continues in succession until it reaches the ear tips at the other ends of the device before
being picked by the listener’s eardrum.

Parts of a Stethoscope

Stethoscope parts and their functions

Let us understand the function of each of these stethoscope parts:

 Chestpiece
 Diaphragm
 Bell
 Tubing
 Stem
 Headset
 Ear tubes
 Ear tips
Chestpiece

The chestpiece, also known as the head, is round in shape and is the central part of the device.
This is the part of the instrument placed against a patient's body. It is the most important part of a
stethoscope. It is responsible for detecting, capturing, and transferring sounds to the headset.
Chestpieces work best when applied directly against the patient's skin. It comprises of -

 Diaphragm
 Bell
 Stem

Depending on the model, a stethoscope can have a one-sided or two-sided chestpiece.

Diaphragm

The round and circular end of the chestpiece is the diaphragm. Its large size allows you to listen
to a wider area of the patient's body. It can detect sounds with higher frequencies in large areas
of the patient. Nowadays, the diaphragms are designed to eliminate the chill when it is placed
directly against the patient's skin. This is done by using a chill ring encircling the diaphragm
which helps to make an airtight seal and prevents the patient from feeling the coldness of the
part.

Bell

The circular end of the chestpiece is called the bell. Due to its smaller size, it can detect lower
frequency sounds than the diaphragm and is ideal for small body parts. A non-chill ring is
present on the edges of the bell as well.
Stem

The stem is the part that connects the chestpiece to the stethoscope tubing. It is made of metal or
steel and ensures a secure link for optimal performance. It also allows you to switch between the
diaphragm and bell.

Tubing

The stethoscope tubing is the flexible rubber or PVC material pipe that connects the chestpiece
to the headset. This part of a stethoscope is responsible for transferring the sound waves picked
up by the diaphragm and bell to the headset with minimal quality loss (which depend on the type
of tubing it is built with).

The stethoscope tubing can be either a single tube or dual lumen tube design. The dual lumen
tubing is split halfway through it producing different sounds in each ear tube or ear tips.

Headset

The upper half of the stethoscope is the headset. It comprises of two ear tubes, tension springs,
and ear tips. It ensures efficient flow of sound to flow into the ear canal so that there is minimal
disturbance.

Ear tubes

Ear tubes are hollow metal tubes that connect the acoustic tubes and the ear tips. They provide the left and
right pathways for sound to travel through. The tension spring rests between the ear tubes which helps
you to adjust how tight your stethoscope is sitting on your ears.

Ear tips

The ear tips are the parts that go into the ear - made of rubber or silicone. They are placed on the
ends of the ear tubes and have a hole in the middle for letting out the sound. Ear tips should be soft
and yet firm to create a seal in your ears and cancel all outside sound.