ABSTRACT
René Théophile Hyacinthe Laënnec (1781–1826) was a French physician and inventor of the stethoscope. Before Laënnec, physicians listened to the heart and lungs by pressing their ear directly against the chest wall. This was embarrassing when examining women and less than effective when examining overweight patients. Laënnec’s stethoscope overcame both problems. His original apparatus was a cylinder – the physician held one end against the chest and the other against his ear. Laënnec was the first to use the terms ‘rhonchi’ and ‘crepitance’ when diagnosing respiratory conditions. He was professor of medicine at the Collège de France. Laënnec died of tuberculosis at the age of just 45 and left his personal stethoscope to a relative – describing it as ‘the greatest legacy of my life’ ( 2 ).
