Which tool can be used to auscultate the heart manually during anesthesia?

The esophageal stethoscope is specifically designed for auscultating heart sounds and other physiological noises in an animal's chest while under anesthesia. This tool is placed in the esophagus, allowing for direct transmission of heart sounds to the clinician's ear or to a connected monitoring device. This method is particularly useful during anesthesia, as it provides clear and continuous heart sounds, helping to assess the heart's function and monitor the patient's status in real-time.

In contrast, a pulse oximeter measures the saturation of oxygen in the blood but does not provide direct information about heart sounds. A Doppler flow detector is primarily used to measure blood flow and can also provide some heart rate information but not specific sounds. An oscillometric monitor is designed to measure blood pressure and heart rate through oscillations in blood flow, rather than through auditory auscultation. Each of these devices plays a valuable role in monitoring anesthesia but does not serve the same purpose as the esophageal stethoscope for manual auscultation.