The Utility of Real-Time Remote Auscultation Using a Bluetooth-Connected Electronic Stethoscope: Open-Label Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial

Abstract

Background The urgent need for telemedicine has become clear in the COVID-19 pandemic. To facilitate telemedicine, the development and improvement of remote examination systems are required. A system combining an electronic stethoscope and Bluetooth connectivity is a promising option for remote auscultation in clinics and hospitals. However, the utility of such systems remains unknown. Objective This study was conducted to assess the utility of real-time auscultation using a Bluetooth-connected electronic stethoscope compared to that of classical auscultation, using lung and cardiology patient simulators. Methods This was an open-label, randomized controlled trial including senior residents and faculty in the department of general internal medicine of a university hospital. The only exclusion criterion was a refusal to participate. This study consisted of 2 parts: lung auscultation and cardiac auscultation. Each part contained a tutorial session and a test session. All participants attended a tutorial session, in which they listened to 15 sounds on the simulator using a classic stethoscope and were told the correct classification. Thereafter, participants were randomly assigned to either the real-time remote auscultation group (intervention group) or the classical auscultation group (control group) for test sessions. In the test sessions, participants had to classify a series of 10 lung sounds and 10 cardiac sounds, depending on the study part. The intervention group listened to the sounds remotely using the electronic stethoscope, a Bluetooth transmitter, and a wireless, noise-canceling, stereo headset. The control group listened to the sounds directly using a traditional stethoscope. The primary outcome was the test score, and the secondary outcomes were the rates of correct answers for each sound. Results In total, 20 participants were included. There were no differences in age, sex, and years from graduation between the 2 groups in each part. The overall test score of lung auscultation in the intervention group (80/110, 72.7%) was not different from that in the control group (71/90, 78.9%; P=.32). The only lung sound for which the correct answer rate differed between groups was that of pleural friction rubs (P=.03); it was lower in the intervention group (3/11, 27%) than in the control group (7/9, 78%). The overall test score for cardiac auscultation in the intervention group (50/60, 83.3%) was not different from that in the control group (119/140, 85.0%; P=.77). There was no cardiac sound for which the correct answer rate differed between groups. Conclusions The utility of a real-time remote auscultation system using a Bluetooth-connected electronic stethoscope was comparable to that of direct auscultation using a classic stethoscope, except for classification of pleural friction rubs. This means that most of the real world’s essential cardiopulmonary sounds could be classified by a real-time remote auscultation system using a Bluetooth-connected electronic stethoscope. Trial Registration UMIN-CTR UMIN000040828; https://tinyurl.com/r24j2p6s and UMIN-CTR UMIN000041601; https://tinyurl.com/bsax3j5f