Phonocardiogram signal analysis: a review

Abstract

Many disease of the heart cause changes in heart sounds and additional murmurs before other signs and symptoms appear. Hence, heart sound analysis by auscultation is the primary test conducted by physicians to assess the condition of the heart. Yet, heart sound analysis by auscultation as well as analysis of the phonocardiogram (PCG) signal have not gained widespread acceptance. This is due mainly to many controversies regarding the genesis of the sounds and the lack of quantitative techniques for reliable analysis of the signal features. The heart sound signal has much more information than can be assessed by the human ear or by visual inspection of the signal tracings on paper as currently practiced. Here, we review the nature of the heart sound signal and the various signal-processing techniques that have been applied to PCG analysis. Some new research directions are also outlined.