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Michael DeBakey (1908)close

Born in Lake Charles, Louisiana, Dr. Michael DeBakey was a pioneer in the field of cardiac care and surgery. At age 23, he inventor one of the components of the heart-lung bypass machine, making open-heart surgery possible. He contributed toward the technology that made the first external artificial heart, and developed the use of Dacron grafts for repairing blood vessels. He is said to have operated on more than 50,000 patients over his long career as a surgeon.

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