Hospital affiliations: SLEH.

Academic appointment: Clin. Prof., UTMSH.

Medical school: Baylor, 1972.

Specialty training: Baylor Affiliated Hosps., THI.

Certification: Am. Board Surgery (and Special Qualification in General Vascular Surgery), Am. Board Thoracic Surgery.

Specialty interests: Valve repair surgery, coronary artery bypass surgery, aneurysm surgery, peripheral vascular surgery.

Director, Surgical Innovation, THI

Ross M. Reul, M.D., Director of Surgical Innovations, St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital and Texas Heart Institute, a highly respected cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon is utilizing his technical expertise in the study of various surgical interventions and modalities for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Some of these innovations include:

Dr. Reul holds medical and professional staff appointments at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital and Texas Heart Institute in Houston. He is Program Coordinator of the Thoracic Residency Program at Texas Heart Institute. He received the Doctor of Medicine degree from Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, Cum Laude in 1993 after receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1989 from the University of Texas at Austin.

Upon completion of a General Surgery Residency at the Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School from 1993 to 1995 and from 1997 to 2000, he completed a Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Residency at Texas Heart Institute in 2002.

He is certified by both the American Board of Surgery (2001) and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery (2003) and licensed to practice medicine and surgery in both Texas and Massachusetts.

Dr. Reul is very involved in cardiovascular surgical research at Texas Heart Institute and has authored and co-authored numerous publications during his career. Some of these published articles have focused on:

He has been the recipient of such awards as the Excellence in Teaching Award from the Harvard Medical Students (1997-1998), Young Investigator Award from the American Society of Transplant Physicians (1997) and the Baylor Medical Alumni Association Outstanding Student Award (1993). Dr. Reul is also an active member of numerous medical and scientific societies:

President and Surgeon-in Chief, THI

Denton A. Cooley, M.D., founded the Texas Heart Institute in 1962 and currently serves as its president and surgeon-in-chief. He is also chief of Cardiovascular Surgery at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital and consultant in Cardiovascular Surgery at Texas Children's Hospital. In addition, he is clinical professor of surgery at The University of Texas Medical School-Houston.

Dr. Cooley graduated from the University of Texas in 1941 with highest honors. He played varsity basketball for three years at the University and was a member of the 1939 Southwest Conference championship basketball team. He went on to earn a medical degree from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in 1944, where he was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha. After completing surgical training at Johns Hopkins in 1950, he spent a year with Lord Russell Brock in London, where he participated in the first intracardiac operations in England. He served on the full-time faculty of Baylor College of Medicine for 18 years as professor of surgery. In 1969, he resigned to become surgeon-in-chief at the Texas Heart Institute.

A world-renowned surgeon, Dr. Cooley has pioneered many techniques used in cardiovascular surgery. He is widely known for operations to correct congenital heart anomalies in infants and children. In 1968, he performed the first successful human heart transplant in the United States. In 1969, he became the first heart surgeon to implant an artificial heart in a human. In addition to developing new surgical techniques, Dr. Cooley has always been interested in developing prosthetic devices for use in cardiovascular operations. He has been directly associated with the development of at least 200 cardiovascular surgical products, including grafts, valves, surgical instruments, and oxygenators. Dr. Cooley and his associates have performed more than 100,000 open heart operations-more than any other group in the world.

Governments and institutions around the world have recognized Dr. Cooley's dedication to advancing cardiovascular medicine, to helping patients, and to educating others. He has received more than 120 honors and awards, including the National Medal of Freedom and the National Medal of Technology, two of the United States' highest civilian awards. Dr. Cooley has also received the Gifted Teacher Award from the American College of Cardiology; the Distinguished Service Award of the American Medical Association; the Theodore Roosevelt Award, the highest honor given by the National Collegiate Athletic Association to a varsity athlete who has achieved national recognition in his profession; the Rene Leriche Prize, the highest honor of the International Surgical Society; and the Grand Hamdan International Award for Cardiovascular Medicine and Surgery. Dr. Cooley has been named Distinguished Alumnus at both the University of Texas and Johns Hopkins University and has received honorary degrees from eight colleges and universities. In addition, he has been named a fellow of four royal colleges of surgeons and two international colleges and has been decorated by numerous countries. He is the author or co-author of more than 1,200 scientific articles and a dozen books.

Dr. Cooley believes his major accomplishments have been the creation of the Texas Heart Institute and the development of a school of surgery. He is especially proud of the Institute's new home: The Denton A. Cooley Building, which has state-of-the-art facilities for research, education, and patient care.

Dr. Cooley has truly been one of the pioneers and innovators in cardiovascular medicine and surgery throughout the world. He has been responsible for the care and treatment of thousands of patients with cardiovascular diseases, as well as the education and training of numerous students and physicians, whom he considers his legacy.