How many Stethoscopes...

I believe I have 12, most of them are cheaper knock-off models. All but one I got from Amazon, my very first one my mom gave to me when I was about 8 years old, a light-blue duel-head economy stethoscope. That's what started everything off for me! 😃

What makes a stethoscope sexy? It's the person using it! It doesn't matter what kind it is. It's the power which comes from the potential knowledge which can come from the use of it and the benefit which the patient can get from it's use. It's the doc not the tool!

For me the strange thing is how the same person can suddenly become oh so much sexier simply by wearing and using a stethoscope.

I do not own one. Although I would absolutely love to. Just no one to play with right now..so no reason to have one..yet!

Only have Littmann Classic II for now,planed for bought new Cardiology III or Classic III

Just own one, a cheapish Sprague-Rappaport imitation I got off Amazon. From a medical point of view probably not the best in the world, but it does the job. It's got an ice cold ring when I place it against my bare skin which doubly makes my heart beat faster and stands me to attention downstairs. 😃

I have a Littmann which I love. I haven't got any others although I'm definitely thinking about it.

Currently, zero. Very sad.

I've used several different cheap brands and I think I need to invest in one with better ear pieces because even just the time it takes to do a blood pressure or the regular APTM sounds my ears start to hurt from those stupid cheap rubber ear pieces on mine. I have 2 and am probably the only person who does not own a littmann lol. I have no trouble hearing most murmurs and things, but the comfort alone would be worth it. The class ahead of us was selling the cheap ones as a fundraiser and I hate to admit I was suckered in :/

Docjohn it's worth it to get a good Cardiology 2 or three. Nothing beats s Sprague Rapoport for hearing low pitched sounds like gallops though.

Docjohn as Liquidsky has advised it probably best to invest in a good quality stethoscope given your chosen career. I have a Litmann Cardiology lll which I have had for a number of years and its an excellent multipurpose stethoscope.

What I like about it is the ability to switch between bell and diaphragm mode easily by just applying a little more pressure over chest piece so you can listen to low and high frequency sounds by just applying pressure to the diaphragm instead of having to remove and turn the diaphragm manually .

Littmann Cardiology lll comes with double sided chest piece; larger diaphragm is used for adults while smaller one is for paediatric use. Small diaphragm can be removed easily to convert this side into traditional bell which is helpful to listen low frequencies sound.

Its also Latex free ( so good due to the increase in Latex allergies) and it comes with a 5 years warranty always a good thing.

I have only ever used an acoustic stethoscope but i do like the look of the Welch Allyn Harvey DLX Triple Head acoustic stethoscope, specifically designed to accentuate important sounds and enable you to hear cardiac, pulmonary, and vascular sounds without relying on difficult "variable pressure" techniques. So if I were to invest in another acoustic stethoscope I may get that model.

While I have never used an electronic stethoscope I did come across a review for one which sparked my interest . The model in question was the Littmann's 3000 electronic stethoscope.

This was taken by a review by an MD

" I wasn't fully convinced the Model 3000 was worth it until I showed it to another resident. She placed the chestpiece on her heart — over her clothes, mind you — and listened. Her eyes widened. "Oh my god," she said, "I have . I was never able to hear it before." And I listened too. She was right. Even through her clothes, you could clearly hear the mid-systolic click."

So it would be interesting to compare the sound quality as electronic stethoscopes can amplify ( up to 18 times greater than the best non-electronic stethoscope) and the ambient noise reduction technology cancels out "an average of 75% of distracting room noise.

In my clinical environment it can be fairly noisy so the amplification and noise reduction technology of the electronic versus the acoustic would be interesting to compare in the real world setting.

So unlike when i was in training you do have the choice of going acoustic or electronic. Whatever route you decide on you definitely need to invest in a good quality stethoscope

Thanks for the advice! I was actually looking at the cardiology III yesterday and have heard it is a good one. Aside from that one I have been looking around in general for the past couple of weeks as I realize the more I use it the more I am going to realize my current one is not good at all. It's interesting you mention the electronic one as I was considering getting one, but my hesitancy was that I work with a lot of "old school" attendings (not that its a bad thing) and I am worried they are going to bash it and tell me not to use it just because its electronic. I suppose I could try to get them to try it out and go with the proof is in the pudding approach if they give me any trouble lol. Nonetheless when I make a final decision I will have to let you guys know.

Docjohn I would get an acoustic stethoscope before an electronic one. I think it's a good idea to learn heart sounds without amplification first so you know what they are. Then invest in an electronic one if you so desire. If you're going into GYN you won't need it anyway. Remember--"the ear cannot hear what the brain doesn't know. " or something like that.

Good point, I will have to use that quote sometime also lol. The electronic ones seem to be 2-3 times as expensive anyway. Not having years of experience yet it would also probably be bad to get spoiled with amplification as you mentioned

Currently i only have one, but would like to have more.

I have one Littmann Classic 11 SE in black.

I've actually been meaning to count for a while (they're currently stuffed away in some boxes and I haven't had the motivation to unbox them lately) but I probably own 15 or so, but I've probably had 30 or so throughout. I'll go check in a bit.

I also own about 15 blood pressure cuffs of all different types, and likewise have probably owned about 25.

I have 5. tree black, one red Littmann Classic 2 for kid, and one grey MDF that i have change chestpiece on, so it have become a Littmann Classic 3 instead. That is my favorite.

I have 2. One black. One pink

I currently have 7 steths:

1️⃣No name brand single sided stethoscope with transparent tubing and blue chest piece(originally belonged to my great grandmother,an infectious diseases doctor)

2️⃣Mediplus single sided stethoscope with dark blue tubing(got it participating at our local ‘young vet’ circle)

3️⃣No name brand single sided stethoscope with black tubing(I took it out from a blood pressure kit)

4️⃣Mediplus dual head stethoscope with black tubing(got it participating at health activities for teens held by my health maintenance organization)

5️⃣Littmann Classic III Lavender💜

6️⃣Littmann Classic III Turquoise💙(engraved)

7️⃣Littmann Classic III Yellow Lime💛

I have 3.

A little over a month after my post,I recieved a Cardiology IV in Raspberry💖 with Black stem and Rainbow🌈 finish so that makes it 8️⃣

At the moment I only have one. I had it for the past 29 years. I got from my pediatrician. I'm surprised it still works. I been wanting to get a new one but havent found one at a decent price.

1) i only have one.

2) i took it from my parents BP Kit, when they noticed, they thought it just vanished.

I have about 6 or 8 stethoscopes :

Littmann Classic III black

Polish "ZALIMP" 80' model with duble side bell (black)

CHINA cardiology smart membrane bell - good acoustic

Rare polish '70 double side head with switch

and few ones...

I love old, surplus stethoscopes. Always make me big fun, how many patients be auscultated with this steths.. 😉 In real doctors/nurses on real examinations.

I have:

- Erka Duophon '80 -'90

- Rappaport by GIMA

- china cardiology single head

- S+K double head grey

- Boschs black double head

- GIMA classic (clone of Littman Classic II)

- china single head