Intubation Kit

Object Details

Ermold, George

Description

Diphtheria a disease mostly associated with childhood, is caused by a bacterial infection which results in the closing off of the airway making it difficult to breath. The airway becomes blocked by a thick gray mucous material making it difficult to breath. If the throat becomes completely blocked the person could suffocate and die. Diphtheria is not prevalent today, but before the development of a diphtheria antitoxin in 1890, and antibiotics in the 1940’s it was a serious health crises in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

To help keep the throat open Dr. Joseph P. O’ Dwyer (1841-1898) developed a set of tubes to help keep the patient’s airway open and help them breathe.

Known familiarly as O’ Dwyer’s intubation tubes, sets came equipped with thin tubes made of metal or hard rubber of varying sizes, a scale for determining the correct size tube to be used, a mouth gag, an introducer for placing the tube down the throat, and an extractor, a forceps-like instrument for removing the tube.

Inserting the tubes was a two person procedure. A thread is passed through the hole in the tube. The child is held in an upright position by the assistant holding the head back. A mouth gag paced in the mouth, and the doctor inserts the tube down the throat. Once the tube is in place the introducer is removed.

This set of O' Dwyer tubes has a brown leather covered case with hinged lid; two metal clasps on the front. The interior is lined with light brown leather. The set contains: 7 hard rubber O' Dwyer tubes with metal obturators; One O' Dwyer's improved scale, an introducer; a intubation tube extractor; and one Denhardt's mouth gag. "ORIGINAL MANUFACTURER OF DR. JOSEPH O'DWYER'S INTUBATION INSTRUMENTS FOR THE LARYNX". A label on the interior lid reads "GEORGE EMROLD / MF'R of / SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS / 312 & 314 E 22 ST. NY."

Location

Currently not on view

Credit Line

Gift of The Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of the State of Maryland

1897- 1899

1896 - 1899

ID Number

MG.302606.033

accession number

302606

catalog number

302606.033

Object Name

Case

surgical set

intubation set

surgical set, intubation

Physical Description

leather (overall material)

metal (overall material)

wood (overall material)

hard rubber (overall material)

metal, steel (overall material)

gold plate (overall material)

Measurements

average spatial: 5 cm x 24 cm x 12.5 cm; 1 15/16 in x 9 7/16 in x 4 15/16 in

overall: 2 in x 9 1/2 in x 5 1/8 in; 5.08 cm x 24.13 cm x 13.0175 cm

place made

United States: New York, New York City

See more items in

Medicine and Science: Medicine

Health & Medicine

Antibody Initiative: Diphtheria

National Museum of American History

Record ID

nmah_1090324

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746b4-70f5-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa