What Is an Iron Lung, and How Does It Work?

In the 1920s, the development of this technology saved the lives of thousands. But what was the iron lung for, and does anyone still use it?

By Stephen C. George
Aug 10, 2023 6:00 PM
Iron Lung
(Credit: meunierd/Shutterstock)

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In medical and engineering circles, it’s known by a few different names: cabinet respirator, tank respirator, negative pressure ventilator and others.

But since its creation almost a century ago, this lifesaving device has been known almost universally by another name: the iron lung.

What Is an Iron Lung?

As intimidating as the name sounds — and as scary as the coffin-like device looked — the iron lung was a medical miracle for people suffering from something even scarier: poliomyelitis. Before the polio vaccine was invented in 1955, the virus could be a death sentence, and periodic epidemics filled people around the world with a dread that’s hard to imagine today, even in a post-COVID world.

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