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When Helen Taussig, MD , a Johns Hopkins cardiologist, asked Blalock and Thomas for help in finding a treatment for babies with tetralogy of Fallot whose lack of blood oxygen led to weakness and death, they revisited the vascular surgery techniques they had used in the hypertension experiment.
Using the procedure, they joined the subclavian artery to the pulmonary artery to increase blood flow to the lungs. Thomas studied the minute heart specimens of infants at the Hopkins pathology museum for a year before he could reproduce the four-part anomaly of tetralogy of Fallot in a dog's heart. Over two years he worked on canines to demonstrate that joining the arteries was not fatal, so Blalock could duplicate the Blalock-Thomas-Taussig shunt in a human patient.
The shunt was first used in a child in November , with Thomas standing on a stepstool to coach Blalock over his shoulder — a scene made famous in the movie about Thomas called Something the Lord Made and the documentary titled Partners of the Heart. The needles used during the procedure had been customized for an infant by Thomas.
The team went on to perform the procedure in hundreds of infants, with colleagues from around the world coming to watch and learn. In , Thomas developed an atrial septectomy to improve blood circulation for patients whose aorta and pulmonary artery were transposed. His work had revolutionized cardiac surgery, and he left behind a legacy of mentorship, having trained countless surgeons throughout his career.
Thomas passed away on November 26, , in Baltimore, Maryland, at the age of The Blalock-Thomas-Taussig shunt continues to be used in treating congenital heart defects, saving the lives of countless infants. His contributions are now recognized in medical textbooks and at institutions around the world. Today, Vivien Thomas is remembered not only as a groundbreaking innovator in cardiac surgery but also as a symbol of resilience and dedication in the face of adversity.
Your email address will not be published. Alexandre Tano Kan Koffi. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Articles similaires. In a series of experimental operations at Vanderbilt, they had attempted to bring more blood to the lungs of laboratory dogs by dividing a major artery and sewing it to the pulmonary artery that supplies the lungs.
They believed that a refined version of this procedure might help Dr. Blalock and Thomas spent much of the following year developing and performing experimental procedures in the laboratory in preparation for the historic operation on Eileen Saxon.
Dr. vivien t. thomas biography images: Vivien Theodore Thomas (August 29, [1] – November 26, ) [2] was an American laboratory supervisor who, in the s, played a major role in developing a procedure now called the Blalock–Thomas–Taussig shunt used to treat blue baby syndrome (now known as cyanotic heart disease) along with surgeon Alfred Blalock and cardiologist.
But it was Thomas who worked out the final details of the surgical technique and taught them to his famous associate. On the day of the operation, however, Thomas was nowhere to be found. Eventually Thomas was located in the laboratory and summoned to the operating floor. In addition to providing invaluable help to Dr.
Blalock in the operating room, as head of the surgical research laboratory at Johns Hopkins, Thomas helped to train a generation of surgeons and lab technicians. David C. Sabiston in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Thomas was also regarded as the Johns Hopkins veterinarian because of his tremendous success in treating both lab animals and pets belonging to students and staff.
At one point, his reputation was such that practicing vets in the Baltimore area called on him for consultation.
Yet, despite his hard work and many talents, Thomas remained largely invisible at Johns Hopkins and earned little more than a mediocre income. Not until he announced his intention to leave the university to accept a more lucrative job as a carpenter did the hospital offer to double his salary. Thomas then agreed to stay. By the time Dr.
Blalock died in , Thomas had come to terms with the fact that he had never obtained a college degree. He continued to supervise the surgical research laboratories at Johns Hopkins until his retirement in As time went on, however, he became more embroiled in teaching and administrative responsibilities, and less involved in surgical research.
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He was genuinely surprised, and deeply moved, in February of , when a large group of surgeons from around the country — members of the elite group of residents he and Blalock had helped to train — gathered in the auditorium at Johns Hopkins to pay tribute to his life and accomplishments. And he turned heads in the halls of Johns Hopkins — as his uncle had in — not because he was black, but because he was the nephew of Vivien Thomas.
Journal of the American Medical Association , January 2, , pp. Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. January 8, Retrieved January 08, from Encyclopedia.
Dr. vivien t. thomas biography wikipedia
Then, copy and paste the text into your bibliography or works cited list. Because each style has its own formatting nuances that evolve over time and not all information is available for every reference entry or article, Encyclopedia. Thomas, Vivien — gale. American laboratory supervisor — Lake Providence, Louisiana , US. Baltimore, Maryland , US.
Background [ edit ].
Dr. vivien t. thomas biography
Career [ edit ]. Working with Blalock [ edit ]. Vanderbilt [ edit ]. Johns Hopkins [ edit ]. Blue baby syndrome [ edit ]. Decisive surgery [ edit ]. Skills [ edit ]. Relations with Blalock [ edit ]. Institutional acknowledgment [ edit ].
Dr. vivien t. thomas biography death
Personal life and death [ edit ]. Legacy [ edit ]. See also [ edit ]. References [ edit ]. Journal of Medical Biography. PMID S2CID Profiles in Hue. Light of the Savior Ministries. ISBN Retrieved February 14, Thomas, L. Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. Retrieved March 18, Archived from the original on March 2, Retrieved March 8, Notion Press.
Retrieved January 12, Enslow Publishing, LLC. December 1, Seminars in Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. African American Biographies, Volume 9.