(left to right): Clarence Dennis (1909-2005), John Heysham Gibbon, Jr. (1903-1973), Leland Clark, Jr. (1918-2005), Frank Gollan (1910-1988), and Vishwa Gupta
Clarence Dennis (1909-2005) performed the first open heart surgery using the heart-lung machine; surgeon John Heysham Gibbon, Jr. (1903-1973) invented the heart-lung machine; Leland Clark, Jr. (1918-2005), a biochemist, invented the Clark electrode, a device used for measuring oxygen in blood; Frank Gollan (1910-1988) had helped to isolate the polio virus and was also part of the team that had developed the heart-lung machine; Vishwa Gupta was then an exchange student from India, working with Gollan and Clark. They were attending the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Heart Symposium at the Mayflower Hotel, Washington, D.C., January 21, 1950.
No access restrictions Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu