Incubators in Neonatal Medicine

The incubator for children to improve the survival chances of premature and immature newborns was developed in France as early as 1857. The first device in the United States was built by William Champion Deming at the State Emigrant Hospital on Ward's Island, New York. The first baby placed in it was Edith Eleanor McLean, who weighed 1106 grams at birth on September 7, 1888. The device was heated by 57 liters of water. Precursors to these devices, which mimic the consistent temperature in the womb, were the Ruehl cradle in Moscow in 1835 and the "warm bath" introduced by Credé in Leipzig in 1864. The technology of that time is incomparable to the technology of today's incubators and microbiological incubators.