Arthur Guyton (psychologist)
Arthur C. Guyton was a prominent American physiologist and educator, born on September 8, 1919, in Oxford, Mississippi. He was significantly influenced by his family's academic background; his father was a medical dean, and his mother taught mathematics and physics. Guyton excelled academically, graduating at the top of his class from both high school and the University of Mississippi before attending Harvard Medical School. His early career was impacted by World War II, where he served in the U.S. Navy and earned honors for his work in medical facilities.
Guyton is best known for his influential "Textbook of Medical Physiology," first published in 1956, which became one of the most widely used texts in medical education globally. His research made groundbreaking contributions to the understanding of cardiovascular physiology, particularly regarding the relationship between cardiac output and the body’s oxygen needs. He also invented assistive devices for the disabled, including the first motorized wheelchair controlled by a joystick, earning recognition for his innovations. Throughout his career, Guyton was a dedicated mentor, inspiring numerous students who pursued successful careers in the field. He passed away in 2003 in an automobile accident, leaving behind a legacy in both medicine and education.
Arthur Guyton (psychologist)
Physiologist, cardiovascular researcher, author
- Born: September 8, 1919
- Birthplace: Oxford, Mississippi
- Died: April 3, 2003
- Place of death: Jackson, Mississippi
Education: University of Mississippi, Oxford; Harvard Medical School, Boston
Significance: Arthur C. Guyton was a physiologist, a cardiovascular researcher, and an educator. He is the author of the Textbook of Medical Physiology, the most widely used physiology textbook for medical students. Guyton was the father of ten Harvard-educated physicians.
Background
Arthur C. Guyton was born on September 8, 1919, in Oxford, Mississippi. His father, Billy S. Guyton, was an ear, nose, and throat specialist and the dean of the University of Mississippi School of Medicine. Guyton's mother, Kate Smallwood Guyton, was a mathematics and physics teacher and a missionary in China. As a boy, Guyton enjoyed watching his father working and enjoying his many hobbies, which included building sailboats, building electric devices, playing chess, and conversing with friend and neighbor William Faulkner, who purchased one of his sailboats.
Guyton graduated from University High School at the top of his class academically and won prizes for physics and a short story. He then attended the University of Mississippi, completing his undergraduate studies in three years and again graduating at the top of his class. Guyton's next step was Harvard Medical School. While there, he came up with a way to measure and differentiate ions in a solution. His idea impressed a biochemistry professor so much that he gave Guyton a small lab for his experimentation.
During his senior year in 1943, Guyton met his future wife Ruth Weigle, a recent graduate of Wellesley College and the daughter of the dean of Yale University Divinity School.
Guyton graduated from Harvard in 1953 and became a surgical intern at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. However, his residency was interrupted when he was called to serve in the US Navy during World War II. His work at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda and at Camp Detrick in Maryland earned him an Army Commendation Citation.
After the war, Guyton returned to Massachusetts General to continue his residency but was stricken with polio a year later. Guyton suffered paralysis in his right leg, his left arm, and both shoulders, which ended his plans to become a cardiovascular surgeon.
Life's Work
While recuperating for nine months in Warm Springs, Georgia, Guyton decided to help disabled people like himself. He invented the first motorized wheelchair controlled by a joy stick, special leg braces, and motorized hoists for lifting patients. Guyton received a presidential citation for these inventions.
Once recovered, Guyton joined the faculty at the University of Mississippi School of Medicine, where he was named professor and chair of the Department of Physiology and Biophysics in 1948, a position he held until his retirement in 1989. While in Oxford, Guyton began compiling his famous Textbook of Medical Physiology, which was based on his class lectures. Guyton's work became the best-selling physiology text in the world. As of 2017, the book had been translated into fifteen languages and was used by students throughout the world.
As a cardiovascular researcher, Guyton made groundbreaking discoveries. While studying the causes of high blood pressure in the 1950s, Guyton discovered that cardiac output—the amount of blood pumped by the heart—is determined by the body's tissues' need for oxygen. Prior to this, it was widely believed that the heart itself controlled cardiac output. Guyton was the first person to successfully measure the pressure of the interstitial fluid between cells. In 1966, Guyton used an early type of computer to determine the importance of the kidneys in the long-term control of high blood pressure. The research he conducted throughout his life shed light on the workings of the cardiovascular system and helped researchers better understand clinical conditions such as high blood pressure and edema and the drugs used to treat them.
While Guyton's research is his main legacy, he had a major impact as a teacher as well. Affectionately called "The Chief" by his students, Guyton trained more than one-hundred fifty scientists—twenty-nine of them became chairs of departments and six became presidents of the American Physiological Society (APA). His students say he inspired them to do their best and was an incredible role model, both in science and in life. In 2001, the American Heart Association honored his outstanding teaching by giving him the prestigious Eugene Braunwald Academic Mentorship Award.
Guyton's home life was often as busy as his professional life. He and Ruth had ten children—all of whom became physicians. When they were young, Guyton encouraged his children to learn by doing. Along with Guyton and Ruth, the children helped design and build the family's home, including a swimming pool and a tennis court. Neighbors often joked that a repairperson had never set foot in the home—the Guytons made repairs themselves. Working on such enormous projects together fostered values in the children such as dedication and teamwork. The Guytons and their accomplishments were featured on television shows such as Good Morning America and 20/20.
Guyton died in an automobile accident near his home in Jackson, Mississippi, on April 3, 2003, at the age of eighty-three. Ruth, his wife of fifty-nine years, was injured in the accident and died a week later. She was eighty years old. At the time of their deaths, the couple had ten children, thirty-two grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.
Impact
Guyton's peers consider him a giant in cardiovascular research. Guyton published more than six hundred papers and forty books. His research covers nearly all aspects of the cardiovascular system. In addition to teaching and conducting research, Guyton served as president of the American Physiological Society and the Federation of American Societies of Experimental Biology (FASEB). He was also the editor of various medical journals.
As of 2017, Guyton's Textbook of Medical Physiology was a requirement in medical schools throughout the world. (Guyton was working on the 11th edition at the time of his death.) Many consider it to be the most widely used textbook of any kind. In honor of the importance of the book, in 1996 the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) honored Guyton with the Flexner Award in Medical Education.
Personal Life
Prior to his death in 2003, Guyton was married to Ruth Weigle Guyton for fifty-nine years. The couple had ten children.
Principal Work
Textbook of Medical Physiology, 1956
Bibliography
"Arthur C. Guyton Biography." The University of Mississippi Medical Center, www.umc.edu/UMMC/About-Us/History/Arthur-Guyton/Guyton-Bio.html.
"Arthur C. Guyton Obituary." The University of Mississippi Medical Center, www.umc.edu/UMMC/About-Us/History/Arthur-Guyton/Guyton-Obituary.html. Accessed 1 Sept. 2017.
Brinson, C. Quinn. Arthur C. Guyton: His Life, His Family, His Achievements. Hederman Brothers Press, 1989.
Calandra, Bob. "Arthur Guyton Dies." The Scientist, 10 Apr. 2003, www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/22108/title/Arthur-C--Guyton-dies/. Accessed 1 Sept. 2017.
Guyton, Arthur C. Textbook of Medical Physiology. W. B. Saunders, 1956.
Lavietes, Stuart. "Dr. Arthur Guyton, Author and Researcher Dies at 83." The New York Times, 14 Apr. 2003, www.nytimes.com/2003/04/14/us/dr-arthur-guyton-author-and-researcher-dies-at-83.html. Accessed 1 Sept. 2017.
Oliver, Myrna. "Dr. Arthur Guyton, 83, Expert on Hypertension." LA Times, 17 Apr. 2003, atimes.com/2003/apr/17/local/me-guyton17" articles.latimes.com/2003/apr/17/local/me-guyton17. Accessed 1 Sept. 2017.
Oransky, Ivan. "Arthur Guyton." The Lancet, 28 June 2003, HYPERLINK "http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(03)13763-4/fulltext" www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(03)13763-4/fulltext. Accessed 1 Sept. 2017.