Correspondence, Christiaan Barnard to Owen Wangensteen, reporting progress on first attempts of open heart surgery in South Africa

Correspondence, Christiaan Barnard to Owen Wangensteen, reporting progress on first attempts of open heart surgery in South Africa

Open Heart Surgery

Dr. Christaan Barnard of the Department of Surgery at the University of Capetown in South Africa came to the University of Minnesota as a surgical resident in January of 1956. From 1956-1958 he was trained on the pump oxygenator system for open heart surgery, conducted research on the development of an artificial heart valve for aortic insufficiency, and completed a PhD in surgery. A portion of his study was funded through a grant from the Dazian Foundation.

Prior to Barnard's return to the University of Capetown in June of 1958, Chief of Surgery Owen Wangensteen received approval from the U.S. Public Health Service to allocate a sum of money from an existing grant awarded to his department towards the purchase of equipment and apparatus used in performing open heart surgeries for Barnard to take back to South Africa. Barnard performed the first successful open heart surgery in South Africa in August of 1958. He later became well-known for performing the first successful heart transplantation in the world in December of 1967.

Christiaan Barnard

"Barnard, Christiaan N., 1956-1967," Box 5, Folder 142, Department of Surgery records, uarc1007, University of Minnesota Archives

University of Minnesota

12-Aug-58

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Open Heart Surgery

8/18

UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN
(WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE SOUTH AFRICAN COLLEGE).

DEPARTMENT OF SURGICAL RESEARCH,
MEDICAL SCHOOL, OBSERVATORY. Cape. S. Africa.

12th August, 1958.

I - E - 8
Barnard

Professor O. H. Wangensteen,
Department of Surgery,
University of Minnesota Hospitals,
MINNEAPOLIS 14. Minnesota.

Dear Dr. Wangensteen,

I think you would like to know how things are
progressing in the Southern tip of Africa. Our first
problem on arrival here was to get a team trained to run
the oxygenator. I must say this was much easier than I
anticipated. We perfused 21 dogs for periods of half an
hour to one hour and combined this with various procedures on
the heart. Twenty of the dogs survived, and we thus thought
that we were at a stage where we could use the oxygenator
clinically. By this time you have probably heard that our
first case was a success and the patient is just about ready
to leave the Hospital. As I have said before, this
achievement would not have been possible without the help
you have given us, and we would like to thank you again for
all your assistance.

There are various interesting problems which we are
investigating in the laboratory, but I will not tell you
about these now as you will be in South Africa one of these
days and it will then be much nicer to show you around.
We are all looking forward to Mrs. Wangensteen's and your
visit to South Africa and I have planned for somebody to
show Mrs. Wangensteen all the birds in the Cape.

If there is anything I could do for you, or if there
are any problems which you think I should investigate,
please let me know.

Give my regards to the staff of the department of
surgery and to Mrs. Wangensteen.

Yours sincerely,

Chris.

Chris. Barnard.

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