Abstract: An esophageal stethoscope includes a plastic tube having at least one bore extending over the length of the tube. The tube has a distal end which is insertable into the esophagus of the patient, and a proximal end for providing respiratory and heart sounds produced at the distal end and transmitted through the tube for monitoring. A microphone element is mounted in the bore of the tube at the distal end for detecting the respiratory and heart sounds, and providing corresponding electrical signals. The signals are conducted through wires arranged in the tube bore to the proximal end of the tube where the wires are connected to a terminal member. Accordingly, the heart and respiratory sounds can be reproduced with maximal signal to noise ratio when the terminal member is connected to a suitable amplifier and speaker arrangement, or other signal processing equipment.