Ernst Moro

Ernst Moro
Ernst Moro in 1904
Born	8 December 1874 Laibach, Duchy of Carniola, Austria-Hungary (today Ljubljana, Slovenia
Died	1951
Nationality	Austria
Occupation	physician pediatrician
Known for	Moro reflex

Ernst Moro (8 December 1874 in Laibach, Duchy of Carniola, Austria-Hungary, today Ljubljana, Slovenia – 1951) was an Austrian physician and pediatrician who was the first in western medicine to describe the infant reflex that was named after him (Moro reflex).

Moro studied medicine in Graz, Austria, getting his M.D. in 1899. From 1901 to 1902 he worked with Theodor Escherich (1857–1911) in Vienna, the discoverer of the Escherichia coli bacterium. He was habilitated for pediatrics in Munich in 1906, and became a professor of pediatrics in the University of Heidelberg in 1911.

Besides the Moro reflex he became also known for the following:

In 1936, after the Nazis came to power, Moro resigned from his chair at the University of Heidelberg, alleging reasons of health. However the real motive was that he was married to Grete Moro, née Königsvald, of Jewish origin. He started a private clinic at Mozartstrasse 10 (where a commemorative plaque is now affixed) and retired in 1948.

In 1908, diarrhea killed many babies in Germany. Professor Moro, at that time the head of a children hospital in Heidelberg, found out by experiment that a simple carrot soup decreased the death rate of babies suffering from diarrhea by nearly 50% . The soup was made by pureeing 500 grams of peeled carrots in a blender, adding 1 liter of water, and then cooking it for one hour. After cooking, 3 grams of salt were added, along with enough water until the soup pot contained a total of 1 liter of liquid.