A low-cost solution for converting existing stethoscope into tele-stethoscope in resource-constrained setting for COVID-19 pandemic

Sumit Kalra; Preeti Mutreja; Amit Goyal; Abhinav Dixit

doi:10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1101_20

A low-cost solution for converting existing stethoscope into tele-stethoscope in resource-constrained setting for COVID-19 pandemic

J Family Med Prim Care. 2020 Nov 30;9(11):5435-5436. doi: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_1101_20. eCollection 2020 Nov.

Authors

Sumit Kalra¹, Preeti Mutreja², Amit Goyal³, Abhinav Dixit⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India.
² Department of Pathology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India.
³ Department of Otorhinolaryngology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India.
⁴ Department of Physiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India.

Abstract

In the present scenario of COVID-19, there has been a sudden surge in demand for tele- consultancy. Such measures require resources to support the system. Replacement of conventional equipment used in a clinic with digital equipment is not feasible due to their cost and scalability issues. The authors developed a simple low-cost (almost zero cost) method to convert a conventional stethoscope into a tele-stethoscope. Such a simple modification can be useful in periphery wherein doctors are still not available and the growing number of patients would require a diagnosis of the chest conditions.

Keywords: COVID-19; stethoscope; teleconsultation.