While Becton Dickinson did develop and market the first practical evacuated tube that could be used for general specimen collection, they were not the first to develop and market an evacuated tube. In 1915 an article was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association entitled The Vacuum Tube of Keidel, as Applied to Blood-Culture Work by C.C.W. Judd and C. E. Simon. Their studies used a large vacuum tube developed by Keidel, which he used to collect blood to examine for syphilis using the Wasserman test. Judd and Simon modified the system by adding culture medium to each tube which was then connected to a suction pump and a vacuum established. The neck of the tube was sealed, then provided with a stiff rubber cuff that was armed with a needle.
