Listen up – TrueSteth is transforming telehealth
TrueSteth is a revolutionary digital platform that allows the transmission of diagnostic-quality stethoscope sounds over a video conference call, with exceptional audio fidelity.
In 1816 when the French physician, Rene Laënnec, invented the prototype stethoscope, he became known as the father of clinical auscultation.
Now, in 2021, with the launch of TrueSteth by Visionflex, the stethoscope and the practice of auscultation have entered the 21st century.
TrueSteth is a revolutionary digital platform that allows the transmission of diagnostic-quality stethoscope sounds over a video conference call, with exceptional audio fidelity.
TrueSteth’s revolutionary software means that, for the first time, a physician at the far end of a telemedicine video conference call can remotely manipulate the software controls of a digital stethoscope – the volume, gain, and filter settings – as if they were physically in the room with a patient.
“For years, the dream of achieving true stethoscope audio quality over a video conferencing call has been the ultimate goal of telehealth physicians,” said Visionflex CEO and Co-founder, Mr Mike Harman.
“Now the team at Visionflex has developed a revolutionary solution that not only reproduces stethoscope sounds with amazing clarity and accuracy, but also gives a remote physician complete control over the stethoscope’s local audio volume, filter settings, and gain.
“The high-fidelity audio helps ensure an accurate diagnosis with crystal-clear heart, lung, and body sounds over any distance – even in low-bandwidth environments.”
TrueSteth also features a display panel that provides a visual representation of the stethoscope’s audio feed, with the option of three adjustable viewing modes for heart, lung, and body sounds. The visual display’s clinical data can be recorded and shared or saved to an electronic health record system.
Because TrueSteth makes it possible to bring specialist medical help to the point of need, it is particularly well suited to delivering healthcare in remote locations and settings where access to medical services can be problematic. These settings include rural communities; retirement and aged care facilities; oil, gas, and mining sites; field health sites; military and defence; and corrective-service facilities.
TrueSteth is also a valuable collaborative training tool for hospital registrars and medical students.
A range of digital stethoscopes can be used with TrueSteth including USB, Bluetooth and 3.5mm microphone plug connections.
A TrueSteth scenario:
A nurse in a remote NSW clinic is examining a patient who recently had heart surgery. The nurse connects with a Sydney-based cardiologist via Vision telehealth platform.
Using TrueSteth and a digital stethoscope, the nurse listens to the patient’s heart while the remote cardiologist, who is connected via the video conferencing link, directs the nurse on how best to position the stethoscope.
The cardiologist listens to the crystal-clear, diagnostic-quality stethoscope audio, adjusting the volume and gain levels, as required. The cardiologist then selects another filter setting and asks the nurse to use the stethoscope to hear the patient’s lungs.
Throughout the auscultation process, the cardiologist can watch the heart trace line on the visual display and take a snapshot or video recording of the clinical data feed.
Using Vision, the cardiologist invites another two medical colleagues to enter the telehealth video conference call. Together, they listen to the stethoscope audio, adjusting the stethoscope’s volume, gain, and filters as required, while watching the recorded trace line and discussing the patient’s condition.
The following day, the cardiologist invites a team of new hospital registrars to participate together in a Vision conference to listen to the recording of the patient’s stethoscope audio and to watch the video recording of both the remote patient examination and the heart trace line.
About Visionflex
Visionflex is a leader in telehealth technology. The company was formed in 2014 by two Australian engineers with the mission of making world-class healthcare available to everyone, everywhere.
From Antarctica to the Middle East, Europe, Asia, India, Canada, and the USA, Visionflex is helping to improve health outcomes around the globe.
Click below to find out more about TrueSteth, and to arrange a demonstration of Visionflex’s innovative telehealth technology
