Blalock-Taussig operation

Blalock-Taussig operation
A pioneering heart operation named after the American surgeon Alfred Blalock (1899-1964) and the pediatric cardiologist Helen B. Taussig (1898-1986). Dr. Taussig designed and Dr. Blalock carried out the first “blue-baby” operation to treat a child born with a previously inoperable heart malformation (tetralogy of Fallot). The procedure joined an artery leaving the heart to an artery leading to the lungs to give the blood a second chance at oxygenation. The joining (anastomosis) was of the subclavian artery to the pulmonary artery. It was the first blue baby operation and came to be known as the Blalock-Taussig shunt. This operation, which was first done on November 29, 1944 at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, is a major landmark in the history of children's heart surgery.

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Bla·lock-Taus·sig operation 'blā-.läk-'tau̇-sig- n surgical correction of the tetralogy of Fallot called also blue-baby operation
Blalock Alfred (1899-1964), and
Taussig Helen B. (1898-1986)
American physicians. Blalock and Taussig were on the staff of Johns Hopkins Hospital. Based upon Taussig's theory that the cause of cyanosis in infants was a functional lack of oxygen, Blalock (a surgeon) developed an operation in which the pulmonary artery and a healthy systemic artery were spliced to bypass any constriction or blockage, thereby giving the lungs sufficient blood for oxygenation. The Blalock-Taussig operation was first performed in 1944; it marked the beginning of modern heart surgery.

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the side-to-side anastomosis of the left subclavian artery to the left pulmonary artery (sometimes the right subclavian to the right pulmonary artery) in order to shunt some of the systemic circulation into the pulmonary circulation; performed as palliative treatment of tetralogy of Fallot or other congenital anomalies associated with insufficient pulmonary arterial flow.

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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  • Blalock-Taussig-Operation — [blạ̈lok ta̲u̲...; nach dem amer. Chirurgen Alfred Blalock, 1899 1944, u. der amer. Kinderärztin H.Blalock Taussig OperationB. Taussig, geb. 1898]: Herzoperation bei der Fallot Tetralogie: operative Herstellung einer ↑Anastomose zwischen dem… …   Das Wörterbuch medizinischer Fachausdrücke

  • blalock-taussig operation — |blāˌläkˈtau̇sig noun Usage: usually capitalized B&T Etymology: after Alfred Blalock b1899 & Helen B. Taussig b1898 American physicians who devised it : surgical correction of the congenital malformation of the heart known as tetralogy of Fallot… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Blalock-Taussig operation (shunt) — Bla·lock Taus·sig operation (shunt) (blaґlok tawґsig) [A. Blalock; Helen Brooke Taussig, American pediatrician, 1898–1986] see under operation …   Medical dictionary

  • Blalock–Taussig shunt — Intervention The arch of the aorta and its branches. In the Blalock–Taussig shunt, blood from the subclavian artery or carotid artery (in red at the top) is redirected to the pulmonary artery (in blue near the center) …   Wikipedia

  • 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. In modern surgery, this procedure is temporarily used to direct blood flow to the lungs and relieve… …   Wikipedia

  • Operation, Blalock-Taussig — A pioneering heart operation named after the American surgeon Alfred Blalock (1899 1964) and the pediatric cardiologist Helen B. Taussig (1898 1986). Dr. Taussig designed and Dr. Blalock carried out the first “blue baby” operation to treat a… …   Medical dictionary

  • Blalock-Taussig-Anastomose — Die Blalock Taussig Anastomose oder Blalock Taussig Shunt (nach Alfred Blalock, Chirurg, Baltimore, 1899–1964 und Helen Brooke Taussig, Kardiologin, Baltimore/Boston, 1898–1986) wird, früher als abschließende, heute als vorbereitende… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Blalock-Taussig-Shunt — Die Blalock Taussig Anastomose oder Blalock Taussig Shunt (nach Alfred Blalock, Chirurg, Baltimore, 1899–1964 und Helen Brooke Taussig, Kardiologin, Baltimore/Boston, 1898–1986) wird, früher als abschließende, heute als vorbereitende… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Blalock-Taussig shunt — see under operation …   Medical dictionary

  • Anastomose de Blalock-Taussig — L’ anastomose ou shunt de Blalock Taussig est une intervention chirurgicale palliative (c’est à dire visant à atténuer les conséquences d’une malformation mais sans intervenir directement sur celle ci) pouvant être proposée dans certaines… …   Wikipédia en Français

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