Listening for Normal and Abnormal Heart Sounds

Heart auscultation uses a stethoscope to listen to heart sounds and check for normal and abnormal patterns. For physicians, knowing how to hear these sounds and tell them apart is an essential skill. The sound heard at each spot on the chest relates to the closing of specific heart valves.

The he...

Proficiency in the use of a stethoscope to listen to heart sounds and the ability to differentiate between normal and abnormal heart sounds are essential skills for any physician.

The heart has two main sounds, S1 and S2. The first sound - S1- occurs as the mitral and tricuspid valves close, after blood enters the ventricles. This represe...