A numerical model to study auscultation sounds under pneumothorax conditions

A 2D viscoelastic finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) is used to simulate sound propagation of lung sounds in the human thorax. Specifically, the model is employed to study the effects of pneumothorax on the sounds reaching the thoracic surface. By simulating varying degrees of severity of the disease, the model assists in determining the key frequency bands that contain the most information to aid in diagnosis. The work thus lends itself for development of advanced auscultatory techniques for detection of pneumothorax using noninvasive acoustic sensors.