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A NEW GENERATION OF STETHOSCOPES

 From Worldometer:

           DAY USA  WORLD  Brazil     India   South Africa
June     9     1093    4732        1185       246         82
July    22     1205    7128         1293     1120        572
Aug    12     1504     6556       1242       835        130
Sept     3     1094    5886        830     1083         174
            9     1208     6222        1136      1168          82
Oct      8       957     6420         730       967        160
          12       316     3757           203       710         83
          13       843     5006           354      723       165
          14       970     6075           716       694       123
          15       873     6106           734       835       158
          16       928     6189           716       886         61
          17       638     5639           461     1032         38
          18       448     4040           215       578         63
          19       442     4392           321       594         21

Summary:  Maybe the Fall wave might not be as bad as feared.

From The New York Times this morning:

Why?

That’s happened as many older people — who are most vulnerable — have been careful about avoiding exposure. A greater share of current new cases is among young Americans.

The quality of virus treatments is also improving. Remdesivir, dexamethasone and monoclonal antibodies all seem to help.

But this expected Fall wave has just begun.

Today, the future of that symbolic medical stethoscope, varieties which can be purchased from Amazon.com for as little as $6.95, but can go up to $350.  This device was invented in France a little more than two centuries ago by Rene Laennec.  

That device to the right belonged to Laennac.  Prior to that, doctors placed his (few women docs in those days) ear directly onto a woman's chest to listen to her heart.  British physician Golding Bird in 1840 developed something closer to what you see today.

You wonder why it took so long, but around six years ago ultrasound technology using artificial intelligence and smartphone apps began to be made available to replace the conventional stethoscope.  Newly graduated doctors are still presented with a stethoscope in formal ceremonies, but the time has come for a more expensive modern-day equivalent.  At the least, doctors might wear stethoscopes, but also have an ultrasound in the pocket.

How much more expensive?  Well, $10,000 to $12,000 was initially typical.  

However the latest Butterfly iQ+ goes for $1,999.  Instead of hearing the heart, doctors can now see that sound on a monitor, plus:

  • Hear the sound through a hi-tech headphone.
  • View various fetal and abdominal features.
  • Various cardiac, gynecological, urological and pediatric observations.
  • Scans can be shared over WiFi or cellular connection.

The Philips Lumify Ultrasound Machine is similar, but costs $10,000.

Then there are various electronic stethoscopes:

  • Eko Digital Stethoscope (right) from California costs $200-$400 and wirelessly transmits the audio via Bluetooth to a smartphone or equivalent.  Just out of curiosity I checked with Amazon.com and saw that it is currently unavailable.
  • StethoMe comes from Poland and is specifically developed to measure the lungs of children.  Irregularities are identified.
  • Thinklabs One is a small, circular device fitting into the palm of your hand and amplifies sounds with a variety of audio filtering options to better hear murmurs, diastolic rumbles, lungs, etc.  Costs $500 and can be connected to headphones or smartphones to display audio waveforms.

  • HeartBuds is a $50 electronic audio device to monitor a heart anywhere in the world.  The signal can be downloaded into a smartphone and sent to a healthcare provider.  Littman's Cardiology III and Electronic 3200 are comparable.  However, the FDA has not yet approved this device.
  • Finally, there is something developing at the Indian Institute of Technology called electromechanical dissociation that can digitally listen and diagnose a wide range of heart problems.  This takes the guesswork out of making diagnoses.


#71 of my favorite tunes will come from:

Ricochet was released in 1953 and reached #2 on Billboard.  It was included in the film the following year, Ricochet Romance, with Marjorie Mains, Chill Wills and Rudy Vallee.

Wayward Wind reached #1 on Billboard in 1956 and Gogi Grant was voted the most popular female vocalist that year.  She was the voice of Ann Blyth in The Helen Morgan Story.  Gogi starred in The Big Beat, a 1957 film featuring Harry James, the Cal Tjader Quintet, George Shearing, Del Vikings and others.  She was one of the three solo singers in the first LP of Show Boat, with  Howard Keel.  She was on PBS in 2004 at the age of 80 singing The Wayward Wind.  She passed away four years ago.

#71 is Tennessee Waltz, written by Redd Stewart and Pee Wee King in 1946.  I loved the song when it came out in 1950 by Patti page.  Like many hits, this was the B-side, where Boogie Woogie Santa Claus showed more promise.  It became #1 late in 1950 and stayed there for nine weeks.  If you find that record with that combination, buy or try to sell it, for a fortune, as soon after becoming a hit, BWSC was replaced with Long Long Ago.  In 1974 it was the best-selling song ever in Japan.    My one personal encounter was that I was there when she sang the song at the Fairmont on Nob Hill in San Francisco.  That was 45 years ago.

I've long wondered why the lyrics were not adjusted from what has remained to something more uplifting.  She lost her lover to her best friend.  This, the official state song of Tennessee.  Actually, Tennessee has ten state songs.  No state has more.

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