Helen B. Taussig
Encyclopedia
Helen Brooke Taussig was an American cardiologist, working in Baltimore and Boston, who founded the field of pediatric cardiology. Notably, she is credited with developing the concept for a procedure that would extend the lives of children born with Tetrology of Fallot (also known as blue baby syndrome
). This concept was applied in practice as a procedure known as the Blalock-Taussig shunt
. The procedure was developed by Dr. Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas
, who were Taussig's colleagues at the Johns Hopkins Hospital
.
. Her father was Harvard economist Frank W. Taussig, and her mother Edith Thomas was one of the first students at Radcliffe College
. When she was eleven years old, Helen's mother died. Helen struggled with severe dyslexia
through her early school years, overcoming it only with diligent work and extensive tutoring from her father. She graduated Cambridge School for Girls in 1917, then studied for two years at Radcliffe before earning a bachelor's degree
from the University of California, Berkeley
in 1921. She then studied at both Harvard Medical School
and Boston University
before pursuing her postgraduate cardiac research at Johns Hopkins University
.
Dr. Taussig became profoundly deaf in the later part of her career, and learned to use lip-reading to listen to her patients, and her fingers in place of a stethoscope to feel the rhythm of their heartbeats.
, which led to the development of the pioneering infants surgery called the Blalock-Thomas-Taussig shunt, first performed by Taussig and Dr. Alfred Blalock on an 11-month old baby girl on November 29, 1944. Taussig wrote the book Congenital Malformations of the Heart in 1947, and received the 1954 Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research
for her work. In 1959, she was one of the first women to be awarded a full professorship at Johns Hopkins University
. During this time she was aided by Dr. Haywood Turner (now deceased) from Columbus, Georgia
, who worked with her for two years doing research on children's heart defects.
Taussig formally retired from Johns Hopkins in 1963, but continued to teach, give lectures, and lobby for various causes. In addition, she kept writing scientific papers (of the 100 total that Taussig wrote, 41 were after her retirement from Johns Hopkins). She advocated the use of animals in medical research and legalized abortion. Taussig also learned of the damaging effects of the drug thalidomide
on newborns and testified before Congress on this matter. As a result of her efforts, thalidomide was banned in the United States. In 1977, Taussig moved to a retirement community in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
. Ever active, she continued making periodic trips to the University of Delaware for research work.
outside of Cambridge, Massachusetts
.
from President Lyndon Johnson, and in 1965 she became the first female president of the American Heart Association
. Johns Hopkins University named the "Helen B. Taussig Children's Pediatric Cardiac Center" in her honor, and in 2005 the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine named one of its four colleges in her honor.
, Dr. Taussig was portrayed by Mary Stuart Masterson
.
Blue baby syndrome
Blue baby syndrome is a layman's term used to describe newborns with cyanotic heart lesions, such as* Persistent Truncus Arteriosus* Transposition of the great vessels* Tricuspid atresia* Tetralogy of Fallot...
). This concept was applied in practice as a procedure known as the Blalock-Taussig shunt
Blalock-Taussig shunt
The Blalock–Taussig shunt is a surgical procedure to give palliation to cyanotic heart defects which are common causes of blue baby syndrome...
. The procedure was developed by Dr. Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas
Vivien Thomas
Vivien Theodore Thomas was an African-American surgical technician who developed the procedures used to treat blue baby syndrome in the 1940s...
, who were Taussig's colleagues at the Johns Hopkins Hospital
Johns Hopkins Hospital
The Johns Hopkins Hospital is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, located in Baltimore, Maryland . It was founded using money from a bequest by philanthropist Johns Hopkins...
.
Background
Helen B. Taussig was born in Cambridge, MassachusettsCambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
. Her father was Harvard economist Frank W. Taussig, and her mother Edith Thomas was one of the first students at Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was the coordinate college for Harvard University. It was also one of the Seven Sisters colleges. Radcliffe College conferred joint Harvard-Radcliffe diplomas beginning in 1963 and a formal merger agreement with...
. When she was eleven years old, Helen's mother died. Helen struggled with severe dyslexia
Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a very broad term defining a learning disability that impairs a person's fluency or comprehension accuracy in being able to read, and which can manifest itself as a difficulty with phonological awareness, phonological decoding, orthographic coding, auditory short-term memory, or rapid...
through her early school years, overcoming it only with diligent work and extensive tutoring from her father. She graduated Cambridge School for Girls in 1917, then studied for two years at Radcliffe before earning a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
from the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
in 1921. She then studied at both Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School is the graduate medical school of Harvard University. It is located in the Longwood Medical Area of the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts....
and Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
before pursuing her postgraduate cardiac research at Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
.
Dr. Taussig became profoundly deaf in the later part of her career, and learned to use lip-reading to listen to her patients, and her fingers in place of a stethoscope to feel the rhythm of their heartbeats.
Medicine
Dr. Taussig did extensive work on anoxemia, or blue baby syndromeBlue baby syndrome
Blue baby syndrome is a layman's term used to describe newborns with cyanotic heart lesions, such as* Persistent Truncus Arteriosus* Transposition of the great vessels* Tricuspid atresia* Tetralogy of Fallot...
, which led to the development of the pioneering infants surgery called the Blalock-Thomas-Taussig shunt, first performed by Taussig and Dr. Alfred Blalock on an 11-month old baby girl on November 29, 1944. Taussig wrote the book Congenital Malformations of the Heart in 1947, and received the 1954 Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research
Albert Lasker Award for Clinical Medical Research
Lasker~DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award is awarded by the Lasker Foundation for the understanding, diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and cure of disease. The award was renamed in 2008 in honor of Michael E. DeBakey...
for her work. In 1959, she was one of the first women to be awarded a full professorship at Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. During this time she was aided by Dr. Haywood Turner (now deceased) from Columbus, Georgia
Columbus, Georgia
Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Muscogee County, Georgia, United States, with which it is consolidated. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 189,885. It is the principal city of the Columbus, Georgia metropolitan area, which, in 2009, had an estimated population of 292,795...
, who worked with her for two years doing research on children's heart defects.
Taussig formally retired from Johns Hopkins in 1963, but continued to teach, give lectures, and lobby for various causes. In addition, she kept writing scientific papers (of the 100 total that Taussig wrote, 41 were after her retirement from Johns Hopkins). She advocated the use of animals in medical research and legalized abortion. Taussig also learned of the damaging effects of the drug thalidomide
Thalidomide
Thalidomide was introduced as a sedative drug in the late 1950s that was typically used to cure morning sickness. In 1961, it was withdrawn due to teratogenicity and neuropathy. There is now a growing clinical interest in thalidomide, and it is introduced as an immunomodulatory agent used...
on newborns and testified before Congress on this matter. As a result of her efforts, thalidomide was banned in the United States. In 1977, Taussig moved to a retirement community in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
Kennett Square is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is known as the Mushroom Capital of the World because mushroom farming in the region produces over a million pounds of mushrooms a year...
. Ever active, she continued making periodic trips to the University of Delaware for research work.
Death
She had begun a study of defects in bird hearts when on May 21, 1986, she died in a car accident while driving friends to vote in a local election three days before what would have been her 88th birthday. She was buried in Mount Auburn CemeteryMount Auburn Cemetery
Mount Auburn Cemetery was founded in 1831 as "America's first garden cemetery", or the first "rural cemetery", with classical monuments set in a rolling landscaped terrain...
outside of Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
.
Legacy
In 1964, Dr. Taussig received the Medal of FreedomPresidential Medal of Freedom
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is an award bestowed by the President of the United States and is—along with thecomparable Congressional Gold Medal bestowed by an act of U.S. Congress—the highest civilian award in the United States...
from President Lyndon Johnson, and in 1965 she became the first female president of the American Heart Association
American Heart Association
The American Heart Association is a non-profit organization in the United States that fosters appropriate cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability and deaths caused by cardiovascular disease and stroke. It is headquartered in Dallas, Texas...
. Johns Hopkins University named the "Helen B. Taussig Children's Pediatric Cardiac Center" in her honor, and in 2005 the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine named one of its four colleges in her honor.
Film portrayals
In the 2004 HBO movie Something the Lord MadeSomething the Lord Made
Something The Lord Made is a film about the black cardiac pioneer Vivien Thomas and his complex and volatile partnership with white surgeon Alfred Blalock, the world famous "Blue Baby doctor" who pioneered modern heart surgery...
, Dr. Taussig was portrayed by Mary Stuart Masterson
Mary Stuart Masterson
Mary Stuart Masterson is an American film, stage and television actress and director.-Early life:Masterson was born in New York City to writer/director Peter Masterson and actress Carlin Glynn. She has two siblings: Peter Masterson Jr., and Alexandra Masterson, who are both involved in the...
.