Question

(1 ) Auscultation: (a) which part of the body, anterior vs posterior, provides a better assessment of breath sounds? Why is this the case? (b) What lobes cannot technically be heard when auscultating over the anterior chest wall? If your patient is in supine, where can you place your stethoscope so you can auculatte this lobe best? (c) Which side (anterior or posterior) provides better sounds (both in terms of pitch, volume, and clarity? Why is this the case?

Answer 1

1. a) Posterior thorax provides a best assessment of normal breath sounds. But the adventitious breath sound are best heard over anteriorly. Why Because the adventitious sounds are often superimposed with normal sounds. And anterior thorax is more dense with chest organs and thoraxial muscles. So normal breath sounds bronchial, bronchovesicular and vesicular) are best heard through posterior thorax which is comparatively less dense.

b).Lower lobes of lungs cannot technically be heard during the auscultation of anterior thorax.

When the patient is in supine position you can auscultate the areas of sixth rib at midclavicular line .

c) posterior side provide best sounds in pitch, quality and volume. Why because posterior wall is thin and less dense than anterior wall . But usually it's not possible to memorise the quality of all sounds heard on one side of the body to compare them with the other side.