HOW TO USE STETHOSCOPE LITTMANN CLASSIC

If you stay in Hospital you'll see a stethoscope littmann classic the neck almost in every doctor.However, this wonderfully useful instrument had its origins not in science, but in modesty.
Back in 1800, doctors used to check the heart by simply putting an ear on the patient's chest. However, that was embarrassing . So in 1817, Rene Laennec began using a hollow wooden tube for the task. And by the early 1900s, the stethoscope had evolved into its present form with rubber tubes and a metal bell on the end.
Your doctor's stethoscope litmann classic is a simple device that nevertheless gives him or her crucial information about your heart. First your doctor listens for two sounds--a "lub," followed by a "dub." The "lub" is the sound of the first set of heart valves closing; the dub is the second set closing. In-between the lub and dub, the heart should be quiet. If it isn't, there might be a problem. That's how to use stethoscope littmann classic.
Besides listening for these sounds, your doctor is also listening for how steady or regular that lub-dub is by using stethoscope littmann classic. If it skips or jumps, you have an irregular heart rate. This irregularity can indicate a problem. In many cases, however, it is not dangerous to you.

THE BEST STETHOSCOPE FOR YOU

Stethoscope Littmann is the most popular brand. Stethoscope Littmann has captured the stethoscope market in many countries. Of course, the Littmann's mentioned above are good. I have even used the Classic II. However they are certainly not the best stethoscopes.

The stethoscope traditionally used is the Sprague, developed more than 45 years ago. It is still considered to be the gold standard acoustic stethoscope, with an outstanding high to low range.  However, that being said, once you have learnt to recognize what is simply the tube sound, you'd be hard pressed to get better acoustics from any scope.

As a medical student, I owned a Littmann. However, when that got lost, for a time I used a Sprague I'd borrow from my seniors (all Cardiology fellows, and many med residents, at my institution own Spragues). I felt this was definitely a superior scope. Which in my personal opinion is the best acoustic scope out there.

The "traditional" scopes like the Spraguewere built in an era when bedside diagnosis was of paramount importance in medicine. I feel has helped me over the years to sharpen my clinical skill - you are forced to learn and understand the characteristics of each murmur, gallop, HS, etc... where's the best place to look for them, how they sound, their frequencies, their timing, what accentuates the murmur. I've noticed people who use the Littman just use the flat d - the claim is the patented "Littmann diaphragm" automatically turns into a bell if you release pressure on it. think this has lead to a certain laziness in many students - they don't take the trouble to properly learn cardiac sounds, and correlate what they learn in the books with what they hear in clinical practice. Because they don't hear much. Which in turn can discourage learning and correlating. It's a vicious cycle. It is not helped when they are taught by a generation of physicians who have themselves lost the art and skill of bedside diagnosis, and for whom the exam isn't important - only the thousand dollar test.

 

HOW TO USE STETHOSCOPE PROPERLY

Get the Right Eartip Size
For optimal acoustic performance, it’s important to use the eartip size that best fits your ear. This is especially true when using the soft-sealing eartips. All eartips are available in small and large.
Remove Possible Obstructions
If you usually carry your stethoscope in a pocket or don’t clean it often, lint or dirt may accumulate and obstruct the sound pathway. To prevent debris from accumulating, give your stethoscope routine cleaning and care.

Check the Seal
Stethoscopes rely on an airtight seal in order to transmit body sounds from the patient to the practitioner’s ears. Loose parts in the chestpiece, loose tubing, or cracked tubing can prevent an airtight seal.

Open the Bell
When using a double-sided stethoscope, you need to open (or index) the bell or diaphragm by rotating the chestpiece. If the diaphragm is open, the bell will be closed, preventing sound from coming in through the bell, and vice versa.

3M™ Littmann® Stethoscopes are known for first-class sound quality and comfort. But there are some simple things you can do to ensure the performance and wearability of your new scope.

Align the Headset
Before placing the eartips in your ears, hold the headset in front of you with the eartubes pointing away 

Once the eartips are in your ears, they should point forward

If the fit still isn’t comfortable, and/or acoustic performance is lacking, grasp each of the eartubes and adjust the headset for a custom fit.
Wearing the headset improperly can result in a poor acoustical seal and in some cases, complete sound blockage.