The bag valve mask concept was developed in 1953 by the German engineer, Dr. Holger Hesse, and his partner, Danish anaesthetist Henning Ruben, following their initial work on a suction pump.[2] They named their resuscitator Ambu bag, and then formed their own company, also called Ambu, to manufacture and market it, starting in 1956. This position as first to market has led to the name Ambu becoming a generic trademark, with bag valve masks from any manufacturer being referred to as ‘ambu bags’.