In these days of high media attention to the initial clinical use of a total artificial heart, it is well to keep in mind that the accomplishments of the group implanting these devices at the Humana Heart Institute did not rise de nozm from their hands. An enormous amount of pioneering work had to be done by men of great vision before the possibility of using a mechanical heart in human beings could be considered.
One of these great early pioneers is Dr. William Hall, who worked for many years in Houston at Baylor University; the other is Dr. Willem Kolff, who must be considered the father of the total artificial heart. These giants had the imagination and the understanding that one day these devices could have some clinical usefulness. They laid the groundwork: the piece by piece problem-solving that enabled the present, first experiments in human subjects.
Dr. Hall holds an early patent on a total artificial heart, which he developed in the laboratories at Baylor University. He was a codeveloper of one of the first implantable blood pumps that was clinically used in the mid-1960's. In addition to this forefront work in blood pumps, Dr. Hall also understood that good blood compatible surfaces were an essential prerequisite to their application in medical therapy. He made some very early and important contributions in this as well as other areas in the field of artificial organs, including artificial skin.
I have personally known Bill Hall, and considered him my friend, for well over 25 years. In speaking to him about our mutual interests, his depth of understanding, his gentlemanliness, his graciousness and his willingness to help were always manifest. He is a man of many talents, and I well recall riding with him in his aeroplane which he piloted superbly for many years. In artificial organs, and artificial hearts, Bill Hall is one of the world's superb pilots. In recognizing Bill Hall for his contributions in this field, his colleagues and the community at large are recognizing that he is indeed one of the giants upon whose shoulders we all stand as the dreams of the charter "artificial organists"one by onebecome real.
ADRIAN KANTROWITZ, M.D.