General Information

Serial #

N/A

Part Number

3

Total Parts

6

AKA

artificial kidney machine

Patents

N/A

General Description

glass

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

N/A

Width

N/A

Height

45.7 cm

Thickness

N/A

Weight

N/A

Diameter

30.0 cm

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Medical Technology

Category

Research

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

Corning

Country

United States of America

State/Province

Unknown

City

Unknown

Context

Country

Canada

State/Province

Ontario

Period

Used 1946- 1947.

Canada

First artificial kidney machine made in North America by Dr. Gordon Murray, simultaneously and independently of Willem Kolff's invention in Holland in the 1940s. Designed and built by Murray himself, it was used successfully on four patients at Toronto General Hospital, 1946-47. Murray was a remarkable surgeon and innovator whose work earned him international recognition. In the 1930s Dr. Murray introduced the anticoagulant Heparin to world clinical practice; in the '40s he developed the first artificial kidney in North America; and in 1955 he performed the first successful transplant of a human heart valve. Unfortunately, these achievements are often overshadowed by his later, controversial work on an anti-cancer serum, and on unconventional surgery for injuries caused by traumatic paraplegia. (Ref. 3]

Function

To contain and protect contents: specifically, dialysing membrane and dialysate.

Technical

Large clear glass bath jar capable of holding +25L of dialysate solution [salt-buffered tap water solution], through which blood was circulated. Jar also housed .1 dialysing membrane; cover (.2) incorporated thermometer, heating coil and stirrer for dialysate. Same/similar jar appears to have been used in earliest versions of Murray & Roschlau's artificial kidney machine. [see 2002.0620]

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

"T.M. REG./ PYREX/ U.S. PAT. OFF./ MADE IN U.S.A." stamped on jar front. "5 L", "10 L", "15 L", "20 L" and "25 L" and level lines handpainted in red and white on two side of jar. UHN catalogue no. "994.1.17" painted by hand in black ink on lower edge of jar.

Missing

None.

Finish

Clear glass.

Decoration

N/A