Theory of heart sounds

A phenomenological theory of heart sounds is proposed. The left ventricular wall is modelled as an incompressible spherical shell and the heart valves as two-dimensional membranes. The solutions of the appropriate elasticity equations are matched with those of the hydrodynamical equations describing the propagation of the radiated sound through the soft body tissue. The predicted time plots and frequency spectra show significant resemblance with recorded ones, like equidistant peaks, directional dependence, relationship of sound amplitude and rate of pressure change inside the left ventricle, etc. Sets of parameters are singled out which influence the measured sound. The latter is the integral part of a diagnostic procedure.