Stethoscope???

[Guest logosmd]

I have heard conflicting reported regarding what stethoscope is the best to learn from.

 

Is the " 3M Master Cardiology" really worth the money, or is it just all flash?

 

Curiously,

logosmd

[Guest cheech10]

Honestly, I bought the Cardiology 3 which is easily the most popular, but you could save your $ and go for the Cardiology 2 SE. I really doubt you'd hear much difference (I know I can't). The master cardiology is a bit much, considering it'll be more expensive than many of your attendings' stethoscope.

 

Also, you'll get WAY better rates when the reps come to your school, so I wouldn't worry about getting one yet.

[Guest UWOMED2005]

I use the Cardiology III. It suits me fine. As a medical student, it's unlikely you'll notice the difference anyways. By the time you're a cardiologist and need the upgrade, they'll probably have the Cardiogod X. . . with lasers, EKG and automatic echocardiography built-in (or something like that.) Plus, then you'll be able to afford it

[Guest Ian Wong]

1) You'll get a group discount when you and your classmates buy in bulk, so you'd save easily $50 just by waiting until class starts.

 

2) The reps will come by with samples of every stethoscope they own, so you can try them out (you won't know what you're listening for, but you'll be able to see which ones are comfortable for your ears, etc).

 

3) Most med students I've seen buy the Cardiology 3 in that it's got a pediatric side to it that the Master Cardiology lacks. How useful this pediatric side really is is up for interpretation, but at least you get the option of having it there.

 

I have the Cardiology 3, and it worked out great. No regrets on buying it. Littman also has great customer service; I called in to get a spare part and it arrived free in my mailbox a week later.

 

Ian

[Guest logosmd]

Thanks all...

 

That really helps. I am very excited to get everything ready for the fall, but it is good to know to wait for the bargoons. Looking forward to checking out the Cardiology 3.

 

logosmd

[Guest dakar]

the best thing to do with the "pediatric" side of the Cardio III is take the diaphragm off as soon as you open the box, and fit the thick rubber shell that converts that side back to a regular and far more useful bell.

 

The "tunable" diaphragm that Littman makes a big deal about, IMHO, doesn't cut it for low-pitched rumbling sounds. The real bell is much better at picking those up.

 

but c'mon now...most cardiologists walking around won't even have a scope as good as the Cardio III, so you don't need to worry too much about it. Listening is a skill that has very little to do with the instrument (assuming it's not a plastic Fisher-Price neon yellow special).

[Guest UWOMED2005]

Yeah, everytime I'm in a hospital and ask to borrow a stethoscope, because I've forgotten mine, they pass me some piece of metal and tubing I don't even recognize (Cardio I? Cardio II). . . at least

 

One more point. . . if you decided to buy the "Cardio battlestar galacta" and then decided to go into orthopedics. . . you'd probably end up feeling pretty foolish!

[Guest chefraymond]

I've tried both the Master and the Cardiology III on the cardiology wards.... full of the s3 s4 murmurs etc. that one reads about.

 

To be honest, I actually found the cardiology III to accentuate the murmurs and s4's better than the Master. If you wanna test it for yourself (I read this in a textbook, Sapira's Art and Science of Bedside Diagnosis, which is more appropriate once you're past 2nd year).... wear both scopes at the same time, with the left earpiece in the left ear for scope A, right earpiece in right ear for scope B, and vice versa, then put the diaphragm on the surface of your desk or something. Scratch the desk surface or alternatively tap the desk at a point equidistance from both diaphragms, and listen for yourself which scope transmitted the sound the loudest.

 

No question about this, I did it at home, cardiology III was loudest.

 

Clinically, you DO indeed hear the low pitch S4's much clearer using the bell side of the cardiology III (once you convert it from the peds diaphragm) since the bell filters out high frequency sounds better than the whoopee do tunable diaphragm.

 

To tell you the truth, I bought the Master Cardiology because it looked pretty neat.... I bought the special black edition where the metal parts were also black. The scope looks like a stealth bomber.... and not many people have it.

 

On a sadder note I got my cardiology III stolen at the hospital in Kingston (KGH Kidd 4).... never EVER let your scope out of your sight!!!!!!!

 

if you have any questions feel free to email me at raymond.chan@utoronto.ca

[Guest kosmo14]

I too bought the Master Cardiology assuming it was more expensive therefore better. I am very disappointed in it when comparing it to the Cardiology III. I absolutely agree with chefraymond in the fact that I could hear murmurs much easier with the Cardiology III than with my Master Cardiology. I am going to try to take advantage of our 5 year exchange policy and downgrade for next year because I am not happy with the Master.

[Guest chefraymond]

don't be too disappointed.

 

there are some pros to using the master..... it's faster, since you don't have to flip to the bell.

 

you'll hear II/VI murmurs with both anyways, so it matters little which scope you use.... I/VI ones are usually clinically less relevant or else half the people will miss it anyways.

 

the key, actually, is to know what you're listening for. I spent a month in the CCU and now I can pick up s3 and s4's pretty easily, even with a cheaper nurse's scope.

[Guest Hotsaw]

This could be a dumb question, but could someone please tell me what:

 

1) The diaphragm is

 

2) A reversible bell is

 

Thanks!

[Guest UWOMED2005]

The diaphragm is the wider/greater circumference thing-a-ma-doo you put on the patient's chest. It's better for high pitched sounds.

 

The bell is on the opposite side of of the endpiece, and is the other thing-a-ma-doo you can put on someone's chest to listen with. It's narrower, longer, kind of looks like a bell, and SHOULD be hollow.

 

The Cardio III has a "reversible bell" which means they include a smaller diaphragm that can fit over the bell, turning it into a mini-diaphragm suitable for younger peds patients.

 

The funny thing is that the Cardio III comes with the peds diaphragm attached. It wasn't until the week before my year I OSCE that I realized I hadn't been using the bell all year but rather the ped diaphragm to listen. I took the peds diaphragm off, but couldn't help but notice many of my classmates at the OSCE still had it on. . . as did many this year for the cardiology blocks.

[Guest cheech10]

The adult side is supposed to be tunable: push hard => diaphragm, rest lightly => bell. Doesn't work quite as well as the regular bell, though, and you won't use the peds side much/at all in clinical skills, so swap it right away

[Guest Ian Wong]

Here's the associated website for 3M, the makers of the Littman line of stethoscopes.

 

www.3m.com/us/healthcare/professionals/littmann/jhtml/products.jhtml

 

This is what the diaphragm side of a stethoscope looks like:

 

 

This is what the bell side of a stethoscope looks like:

 

 

Depending on what heart sound you are trying to hear, one side (either the bell, or the diaphragm), will be better suited to hear that sound. You'd turn the stethoscope over depending on which side you wanted to use. Littman has set up some of their higher-end stethoscopes to be "tunable", so that theoretically you get the function of both the diaphragm and bell using the same side of the stethoscope.

 

Ian

[Guest ManitobaMed]

Since everyone else seems to be pimping the Cadiology III (quite popular in my class, too), I'll just put a vote in for the Harvey Elite by Welch-Allan (which has also gained favour among some of us at the U of M). With the student discount, it was as cheap as the Cardio III, and I prefer the sound quality. It comes with a standard bell/diaphragm combo that can be removed and exchanged for the pediatric unit that's also included.

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<title>help</title>

<pagetext>Hi,

 

Could someone please help me?!?

 

I am having difficulty converting the pediatric side to the tradtional bell. I am having trouble removing the pediatric diaphragm. Any help would be much appreciated.

 

Many thanks in advance.

 

Best wishes,

[Guest peachy]

I also had trouble removing it . The grey ring that goes around the edge is its own piece of flexible plastic. From the top, that is, the side with the "L", slip your fingernail under the edge of the grey ring and pry it off. It comes off easily.