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| The stethoscope has long been the main tool in the doctor's toolkit |
In TV medical dramas, doctors and nurses are never without one. At the surgery, it is the GP's best friend.
Along with the white coat, the stethoscope is among the most recognisable symbols of the medical profession.
But according to an editorial in the journal Global Heart this week, the stethoscope is in its death throes, in danger of being consigned to medical history, having been overtaken by technology.
So are the stethoscope's days numbered?
Used to listen to the internal sounds of the human body, particularly the heart, lungs and abdomen, the stethoscope has been around for nearly 200 years.
However, Prof Jagat Narula and associate professor Bret Nelson, from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, believe that handheld ultrasound devices are set to take over from the traditional stethoscope.
They say this is because ultrasound technology is becoming more accurate, the devices are reducing in size and their cost gradually decreasing.
However, Dr Sarah Clarke, a consultant cardiologist at Papworth Hospital in Cambridge and vice-president of the British Cardiovascular Society, says the stethoscope is a doctor's main diagnostic tool.
"We don't leave home without it. You can't replace what you hear if you're a doctor. It's a big part of our training.
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