Stethophone

Home
Canada
St. John's , NL
Stethophone

The most important medical device is the one you already have with you.

07/30/2025

Ever feel like auscultation is just a chaotic jumble of thumps and whooshes? You're not alone. When you're listening to a heart, the main players are S1 (the "lub") and S2 (the "dub"). Think of them as the basic rhythm section of the heart.

Normally, your heart gives you a bit of a break: the period of
🔹diastole (when the heart fills) is longer than
🔹systole (when it contracts).
This timing usually helps you find your bearings.

But here’s where it gets tricky: when a patient has
tachycardia (a fast heart rate), those phases start blending together. It’s like the drummer just sped up the tempo, and suddenly, what was a clear "lub-dub... lub-dub" becomes a rapid "lubdublubdub," making it super easy to misinterpret what you're actually hearing.

🧐So, how do you stay oriented? Keep it simple: S1 is louder at the apex (bottom of the heart, think mitral/tricuspid valve closure), and S2 is louder at the base (top of the heart, aortic/pulmonic valve closure).

📱🩺Train your ear to listen for that loudest point, even when the rhythm speeds up. It’s your internal compass in the cardiac jungle.

07/25/2025

🩺🧐Clinical Case Highlight

This case truly underscores the critical importance of heart sound analysis in diagnosing cardiac conditions. It's a powerful reminder that sometimes the simplest tools, like analyzing heart sounds, can be truly lifesaving.

�

07/24/2025

🤔 Medical Mysteries: When the Diagnosis Hides Behind a Simple Reflex
A young critical care physician shares an unusual case that challenged their clinical thinking.
📝 The patient kept losing consciousness, but only when standing up.�The cause? Surprisingly simple.�

💓 Follow us for more real-world clinical cases and stories that sharpen your diagnostic skills and support your daily practice.�

07/21/2025

🤔 Ventricular Tachycardia: A Surprisingly Simple Way to Stop an Arrhythmia
In certain situations, a forceful cough can sometimes terminate ventricular tachycardia and quickly restore normal heart rhythm. This technique may work for patients who are hemodynamically stable and able to cough on command in a medical setting.

However, coughing is not a reliable or recommended treatment for ventricular tachycardia. It should never replace or delay standard emergency interventions or resuscitation efforts. In specialized, monitored environments—such as intensive care units—if a patient remains stable, clinicians may ask the patient to cough while other treatments are prepared. In rare cases, this can eliminate the need for anesthesia or electrical cardioversion.

The exact mechanism behind this effect is not fully understood. It does not appear to work for all types of arrhythmia; for example, although vagal maneuvers are effective for supraventricular tachycardia, coughing does not typically help these rhythms. Research on the overall effectiveness of cough-induced rhythm conversion is limited, and major medical organizations do not endorse this as a routine intervention.

Learn more in the video!

07/20/2025

Clinicians often use visual nicknames to describe classic ECG patterns—a practical method that aids recognition and recall.

Although informal, these terms highlight important diagnostic insights. 💡
Swipe through to discover some of the most commonly used examples.

�

07/18/2025

Have you ever made any of these mistakes? Swipe through the carousel to find out if you’re doing it correctly.

📱🩺 DM to learn more or visit our website (link in bio).

❗️Caution: Federal law restricts Stethophone version Pro to sale by or on the order of a licensed healthcare practitioner.

07/15/2025

Stethophone Pro provides clear, easy-to-follow instructions, so we are confident you will succeed on your very first try. 🩺📱

❗️ Caution: Federal law restricts Stethophone version Pro to sale by or on the order of a licensed healthcare practitioner.

06/26/2025

Heart disease, often perceived as an ailment of older age, can subtly manifest in younger people. While it may appear to strike suddenly, there are often understated indicators. Recognizing why and how heart problems develop in younger patients is crucial for early detection and intervention.

06/17/2025

🩺📱Have you ever made any of these mistakes? Swipe through the carousel to see if you're doing it right. Don't forget to check the in-app instructions, too!
❗Caution: Federal law restricts Stethophone version Pro to sale by or on the order of a licensed healthcare practitioner.

06/10/2025

Auscultation made easy for everyone with Stethophone. DM to learn more or visit our website (link in bio).

❗Caution: Federal law restricts Stethophone version Pro to sale by or on the order of a licensed healthcare practitioner.

06/05/2025

Heart Valve Disorders are conditions in which one or more heart valves do not function properly, which can affect blood flow. These valves ensure one-way blood flow through the heart and to other parts of the body:
• ♦️ Tricuspid valve
• 🫁 Pulmonary valve
• 💗 Mitral valve
• 🔄 Aortic valve

When valve function is disrupted, stenosis (narrowing), regurgitation (backward blood flow), or other defects may occur.

Heart sounds provide true indications of blood flow through the heart, as well as the timing and functioning of valves opening and closing. Structural and rhythmic issues often manifest early as subtle murmurs or irregular beats.

Stethophone not only enhances these sounds for improved medical listening, but also helps visualize and identify anomalies that can easily be missed during routine examinations.

(Nishimura RA, Otto CM, Bonow RO, et al. 2014 AHA/ACC Guideline for the Management of Patients With Valvular Heart Disease: executive summary: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines. Circulation. 2014;129(23):2440-2492.)

06/04/2025

💡 A groundbreaking May 2025 Circulation editorial urges healthcare professionals to fundamentally rethink our approach to aortic valve disease detection. With alarming numbers of patients going undiagnosed until reaching advanced stages, when treatment options become limited and outcomes poor, the medical community faces a critical challenge.

⚕️ Discover how innovative screening technologies and electronic notification systems could revolutionize early intervention and potentially save thousands of lives in our recent article on our website (link in bio).

Address

95 Water Street, 2nd Floor
St. John's, NL

Website

https://stethophone.com/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Stethophone posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Stethophone: