An image of a baby confined within a strange plastic tube has been circulating the Internet after popping up on the image-sharing website Imgur earlier this week. The contraption turned out to be a Pigg-O-Stat, a device used to immobilize children during X-ray scans.

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Although the device may seem odd at first sight, it has been used since 1960, according to the Pigg-O-Stat website. Doctor's visits can be a harrowing experience for children, and getting a young child to stay still during any medical procedure can be nearly impossible. The tube makes it possible to take X-rays without putting a parent or nurse at risk of radiation exposure from holding them still. While modern X-ray procedures are relatively harmless when done correctly, the Pigg-O-Stat enables a technician to get their job done correctly the first time around in order to expose the child to the lowest amount of radiation possible.

Despite its serious nature, the image has been the butt of thousands of jokes as viewers struggled to understand how a child would end up in such a predicament.“3D printers are getting really good,” wrote one commenter. Another joked, “I've heard of test tube babies, but this is ridiculous [sic].”

Others wrote about seeing the strange contraption in hospitals but not understanding where it came from until they saw this image. "This pic answers a three-year-old question I never asked. Thanks,” wrote one commenter who described himself as a night cleaner on the website Reddit.