Tag Archives: Michael DeBakey

Today in Texas History – November 23

aboutus-debakey-museum-orsurgery1 (320x240)

From the Annals of Overeating –  In 1964, Dr. Michael DeBakey and his team performed the world’s first successful coronary artery bypass graft surgery in Houston.  Debakey developed the concept behind the coronary bypass after noting that in many forms of arterial disease, the portions above and below a diseased or blocked segment of artery were normal.  He theorized that the damaged portion could be bypassed to restore blood flow and prevent a fatal heart attack.  In the first successful coronary bypass he used a  large vein from the patient’s leg to bypass the blocked or damaged area between the aorta and coronary arteries.  The surgery has now become common-place performed at hospitals around the world.

So enjoy your Thanksgiving meal.

Today in Texas History – May 3

From the Annals of the Surgeons –  In 1968, surgeon Dr. Denton Cooley and associates at performed the first heart transplant in the United States.  Dr. Christian Barnard had conducted the first heart transplant six months earlier in Cape Town, South Africa.  The first American surgery was conducted at St. Luke’s Hospital.  Everett Thomas received a heart donated from a 15 year old girl and lived for 204 days after the surgery.   The landmark surgery was the first of many contributions that Texas physicians and scientists have made to the field of human heart transplantation.   Dr. Cooley and another Houston heart surgeon Dr. Michael E. DeBakey were the leaders in the field of heart surgery and heart transplantation.  Their work was the subject of “Hearts” – a book by journalist Tommy Thompson which chronicled their rivalry at the beginning of the heart-transplant era.