The ability to assess lung sounds is difficult for medical
students. There are hundreds of respiratory illnesses and
injuries that a person can develop, each with their own
different sound signatures and levels of audibility. Medical
students often lack a regular source of real patients to
practice their auscultation skills before they become members of
the professional community. One of the burgeoning areas of
medical education for future doctors and nurses is comprehensive
software. The medical electronics company Cardionics, has
developed both a Lung Sound Simulator (PneumoSim Digital Breath
Sound Simulator) as well as software to address need to improve
diagnostic skills of students studying the respiratory and
cardiovascular systems. The software developed for discerning
lung sounds is a CD-ROM titled Learning Lung Sounds, and it
works with all Windows and Mac platforms. Lung Sounds Software
Learning Lung Sounds features comparative tools that allow
students to differentiate a simple lung problem with a