iron lung: Meaning and Definition of

i'ron lung'

Pronunciation: [key]
  1. a chamberlike respirator, formerly used in the treatment of poliomyelitis, that encloses the whole body except the head and in which alternate pulsations of high and low pressure induce normal breathing movements or force air into and out of the lungs.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.