The ‘Stethoscope’ was invented in 1816, by a doctor “Rene Laennec” in France while working at the ‘Necker-Enfants Malades Hospital’ in Paris.
The basic stethoscope was made up a wooden tube and was monaural. He got the idea to develop a device like this because, during his practice, he used to feel uncomfortable to place his ear on a woman’s chest to hear the sound of heart. So, first he tried with a cylindrically shaped paper to hear the heartbeat, and he realized that the sound has been amplified with this physical contact. The stories of the invention vary but the basic principle of the invention was that the acoustic property of a tube is that it greatly improves the ability to hear sounds of lungs and heart.
The basic structure of stethoscope was improved after 25 years by ‘George P. Camman’ from New York. He designed the stethoscope with an earpiece for both ears. After that, the design has been in use from more than 100 years, and with very few modifications.
Later, in the early 1960s, a Harvard Medical School Professor, Dr. David Littmann patented the highly improved new stethoscope with quality acoustical performance. He was the renowned Cardiologist and a recognized International Authority on Electrocardiography. His work over stethoscope completely transformed a simple listening device into a powerful diagnostic tool. After a few years of the invention Dr. Littmann’s stethoscope patent invention was acquired by 3M Company business and continued the market of the stethoscope with refined and improved design during this time period. Today, the stethoscope is known with 3M™ Littmann® Stethoscope as the diagnostic instrument, which is used by millions of Medical professionals all over the world.