Portable Stethoscope for Detecting Subtle Lung Sounds Premieres in U.S.

ChestPal Ltd. has initiated the U.S. launch of its digital stethoscope that can detect, classify, record, and share lung crackle sounds and wheezes. 

The British firm claims its ChestPal Pro stethoscope is the first of its kind, as it can automatically detect and classify crackles and wheezes, and convert lung sounds to visual spectograms. The device also can record, monitor, and transmit lung sounds. 

“ChestPal Pro helps pick up lung sounds that are too subtle to hear when using a stethoscope alone,” said Dr. Emily Tuchman, M.D., general internal medicine. “I listened to a patient’s lungs with my stethoscope and didn’t auscultate wheezing, but with ChestPal Pro, I picked up wheezing and could prescribe the steroids and inhaler my patient needed to improve.”

The stethoscope is designed to help clinicians arrive at a diagnosis accurately, quickly, and confidently, aiding in the timely treatment of life-threatening respiratory conditions, including pneumonia, asthma, and COPD. The tool enables lung exam sharing, making case escalation and referrals easy and convenient, especially in situations when a pulmonologist or other specialist is necessary and not located close to the patient.
 
“We created ChestPal Pro to make lung sound classification more objective and reliable for frontline healthcare professionals as part of their clinical decision-making process,” ChestPal Ltd. Co-Founder/Chief Product Officer Helena Binetskaya stated.
 
According to a recent Glimpse survey, a majority (60%) of healthcare practitioners said they send respiratory patients to the ER when they cannot accurately detect lung sounds, and 85% saida smart stethoscope that detects subtle lung sounds can play a role in reducing ER visits.
 
ChestPal Ltd is a medtech company that creates medical devices and software for respiratory monitoring, classification, recording, and automatic computer analysis of lung sound recordings and spectrograms, powered by its proprietary algorithm. It is headquartered in the United Kingdom, with an office in Atlanta, Ga., distributing its products to healthcare professionals through multiple partners including Henry Schein Inc.