Evaluation of the Spectral Phonocardiographic Analysis

Heart sounds can be divided into three classes: short duration pulses (first and second heart sounds); broadband long duration noise (murmur); and long duration sounds having distinct harmonic pattern (musical murmurs). The characteristics of the analysis of these classes are illustrated, and the timing, duration, and filtering artifacts are discussed. A comparison between phase and amplitude filtering is given. Application of this research instrument to clinical size and cost is considered.