Design and Evaluation of an Electronic Stethoscope System for the Space Station Freedom HMF

Electronic stethoscope systems have been developed which are capable of acquiring and transmitting heart, lung and bowel sounds, with an electronic stethoscope system, the space station Freedom Health Maintenance Facility (HMF) will have the capability to electronically acquire, store, and transmit lung, heart, and bowel sounds to earth. This electronic stethoscope system will aid in clinical diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring functions. In order to accomplish these medical functions, the system must be designed to maintain the clinically relevant fidelity of the various body sounds. To evaluate these clinically relevant performance requirements, both subjective and objective test plans have been conceived. These test plans will be discussed, as well as preliminary results.