Martin Couney, in exhibiting the new incubators at the World Exposition in Berlin in 1896.Īpparently blessed with skills in showmanship as well as medicine, Dr. Budin was convinced that the Tarnier incubators would save so many lives that he enlisted the help of an associate, Dr. Many doctors viewed the practice as pseudo-scientific and outside the realm of standard care. Budin wanted to share his innovation with the world, but few in the stubborn medical establishment would listen.

Pierre Budin began publishing reports of the successes of these incubators in 1888. His incubators had solved the deadly problem of thermoregulation that many premature babies faced.ĭr. These warm air incubators, introduced at L'Hôpital Paris Maternité in 1880, were the first of their kind. Étienne Stéphane Tarnier, who, having observed the benefits of warming chambers for poultry at the Paris Zoo, had similar chambers constructed for premature infants under his care. But one obstetrician realized that if he could find a way to reduce infant mortality, then the population growth rate problem could be solved far sooner. To increase the growth rate, the French needed to start having more babies, as quickly as possible.

The Franco-Prussian war in 1870-1871, along with a concomitant famine, had contributed to a significant population decline in France. It took a war, famine, and poultry to develop the technological breakthrough responsible for saving thousands of premature infants.

Medical incubator for adults