1952 Copenhagen: Intensive Care

The Copenhagen polio epidemic of August 1952 was the outbreak that invented intensive care — the approach so important in fighting COVID-19. It was one of the worst polio epidemics that the world had ever seen, and half the victims were children. A heroic community effort brought to life the idea of anaesthesiologist Bjørn Ibsen: that a new type of ventilator could breathe for a person for hours or days. (Nature | 7 min read)