Feb 17, 2016
Rene Laennec’s 235th Birthday
Late in 1816, while examining a patient suffering
complications of the heart, René Laennec’s memory of a stroll taken
months prior came rushing back. Walking the courtyard of the Louvre that
day, he observed two children playing with a long stick--one scraped it
with a pin while the other listened giddily to the amplified sound on
the other end.
Recalling this, Laennec rolled up a piece of paper and pressed it to
his patient’s chest. The beating of her heart was suddenly audible and
clear, and the stethoscope--an innovation that would fundamentally
change the detection and diagnosis of lung and heart problems--was born.
After several prototypes, he settled on an instrument that resembled a long, wooden tube.
Using his invention, Laennec continued his research on sound in
diagnostic medicine and made several important contributions to the
field. To celebrate what would have been his 235th birthday, artists
Helene Leroux and Olivia Huynh depicted Laennec’s very first stethoscope
beside the one we know today.
Happy birthday, Dr. Laennec.
