Using a stethoscope might seem to very easy. Even small children play with their toy stethoscopes given on their birthday. But it should be used in a specific way for proper diagnosis of the patient. At first a medical related person can have troubles in using a stethoscope efficiently. This can be a case for medical students too. So this article goes the various steps for using the stethoscope properly.
Check the stethoscope for damages and quality
Make sure
that the tubing of the stethoscope is unwrapped properly and doesn’t have any
punctures or leaks. The best tubing in a stethoscope should be short, thick and
stiff with a small bore. Also stethoscope have separate tubing for ear piece
than a single tube.
Use the stethoscope in a quiet area
This will
ensure that the background noise is minimal and gives you a good reading.
Insert the ear pieces inside your ears
Ensure
that you wear the ear pieces properly into the ear canal. This will keep away
the ambient noise. For this while buying a stethoscope you must ensure that its
earpiece fits the ears perfectly.
Place the stethoscope on the bare skin and
pick the sounds
Avoid
placing the stethoscope on the fabric as this will not give you proper sounds.
If possible, wet the skin using warm water to avoid pollution from the hairs of
the skin. Hold the chestpiece onto the skin placing the diaphragm on the chest
spot where the sounds are highest. Also note that the body sounds differ based
on the position of the patient.
Having
read about proper way of using the stethoscope, if you want to buy a new one
for your use visit (www.aboutstethoscopes.com). To
(read more) about the stethoscopes check out best stethoscope reviews.
