The incubator is heated with headlights
Preterm babies often have difficulty regulating their temperature. This can lead to organ failure. Neonatal incubators are an important tool for reducing infant mortality. Unfortunately for developing nations, modern incubators cost $40,000 and up. They also tend to have very short life spans in the developing countries where power surges tend to damage their deilcate circuitry. Fortunately, there is an appropriate technology solution. The NYTimes is reporting the a consortion of Boston teaching hospitals and engineers have developed a rugged incubator that can be made from recycled car parts for a cost of about $1,000. From the article:
Mechanically, incubators are simple devices, providing a warm, clean, womblike environment in which a baby can mature (though state-of-the-art models may have accessories like built-in X-ray machines and rotating mattresses). Low birth weight and other problems make it especially difficult for newborns to regulate their body temperature, a condition that can lead to organ failure.
In the car parts incubator, infants born at 32 weeks’ gestation or longer can receive supplemental oxygen while their lungs gain strength, antibiotics if they have infections, and low-lit quiet in which to sleep if their mothers are away or are otherwise unable to hold them. In an emergency, the incubator’s bassinet can be removed and carried to another part of the building or even to another hospital.
In truth, experts say, the developing world doesn’t need more incubators. It needs incubators that work. Over the years, thousands have been donated from rich nations, only to end up in “incubator graveyards” — most broken, some never opened. According to a 2007 study from Duke University, 96 percent of foreign-donated medical equipment fails within five years of donation — mostly because of electrical problems, like voltage surges or brownouts or broken knobs, or because of training problems, like neglecting to send user manuals along with the devices.
-Ben Connor Barrie
