On This Day In Alabama History: Account Of First Open Heart Surgery Published

By Alabama NewsCenter Staff

November 29, 1902: On this day “The New York Medical Record” published an account of pioneering surgeon Dr. Luther Leonidas Hill performing the first successful surgery on a wounded heart in the Western Hemisphere when he sutured a knife wound in a 13-year-old boy’s heart. Widely regarded as an authority on heart wounds, Hill had not actually operated on a living heart. The boy survived the 45-minute surgery and within a few weeks had recovered from his wounds. Hill, a Montgomery native, was the father of Alabama politician and U.S. Sen. Lister Hill, whom he named for Joseph Lister, the pioneer of sterile surgery.

Please visit Alabama News Center for the read the full article.

Tags: exp8

Category: ALL POSTS, Partner News Stories