Heart: A History

I was curious to read Dr Jauhar's history of the heart not only because I have liked his NYTimes pieces on medicine but also since I knew him somewhat from being together in the Physics PhD program at UC Berkeley in the 1990s. I had enough of study after several years of quantum mechanics and non-linear dynamics, so what could possess this guy to go on to cut cadavers and medical residency (no sleep for 36 hours!) for years ?! ; the whole point of doing physics , after all, was to avoid matters of human messiness, things that bled, smelled and unlike the grand Universe, just died inexplicably one day. But after starting on Heart : A History I am grateful that Sandeep was more diligent in his path to understand this (after the brain) this poorly understood organ - the seat of emotion, where human civilization has sprung from. He has brought the physicist's eye to understand the mechanisms that work and fail - the cause and effect on human health and emotional wellness. Although the conclusions are, by now, well known - we need to eat, smoke less, exercise more and just go with the flow more in this bewildering world, we learn more on the reasons why. Dr Jauhar's prose, although sometimes fitful, keeps our attention throughout, by switching from one particular human story to the next - putting each in context of its times and our own. if I were to nitpick, I thought he could add more on the neat physical mechanisms that make this amazing piece of evolutionary engineering work. Leonardo da Vinci, for example, apparently was the first to realize how the aortic valve controlled blood flow one-way out of the heart - by creating vortices that closed the valve after each pump stroke - Walter Isaacson claims that scientists didnt recognize this until 500 years after the Renaissance. He also glossed over some important observations. for instance, the well known tendency for hypertension among African Americans is also common to South Asians who face less racism and inner city turmoil, so if not a genetic explanation, could it be that these peoples had adjusted to hotter climates where sweat simply loses salt, stabilizing blood pressure at a lower level ? Also, I wish he explained more on why the heart is considered the seat of emotion - yes, takotsubo cardiomyopathy - the weakening of the heart muscles when subject to adrenaline from stress may be part of the picture. But then why do people who exercise regularly, get regular doses of adrenaline, actually have healthier stronger hearts ?there were also a few too many personal anecdotes in the narrative, but that still doesnt take away much from this heart felt achievement. i remember a quip about Benjamin Franklin who 'quit science to be side-tracked into administration' . well I am glad Sandeep Jauhar quit physics to be sidetracked into medicine!

If you are curious about cardiology, interested in the history of medicine, or have a beating heart, Sandeep Jauhar’s Heart: A History is a book worth your time. It is simultaneously easy to read and a deep dive into the subject. Dr. Jauhar’s first two books are memoirs, and in those books, he uses his personal journey to give his readers insight into the worlds of medical training (Intern), and the practice of medicine (Doctored). Now, in Heart, Dr. Jauhar’s personal and family history serves as a thread woven into the tapestry of modern cardiology.As a practicing cardiologist and heart failure specialist, Dr. Jauhar is, himself, an expert, and in Heart, he pays homage to the giants who came before him, to the experts who learned their fields and took the next step… And one of the most exciting parts of reading Heart: A History is that it sets the stage for all of us to take that next step together. Dr. Jauhar takes us through the history of how we cracked the chest, fixed the plumbing, tamed electrical instability, and made enormous strides in protecting our hearts from threats like high cholesterol.But despite being called “A History,” Sandeep Jauhar’s book is also a look into the future. He prepares us for where the field is going next: how much we still have to learn about the interactions between our metaphorical heart, our emotions, and our mechanical pump. Moreover, he takes us from his own family’s history, his own genes, and his own coronary calcifications, to the larger picture of how all of our individual hearts are influenced by the world around us, e.g. by our friends, by our families, by our communities, and by our socioeconomic status.Dr. Jauhar is a gifted writer. I recommend you read his Heart: A History, and that you give it as a gift this Holiday season to someone whose heart you care about.

THIS 👏🏻 BOOK👏🏻I had goosebumps the whole time I read this!Scientists experimenting on themselves, accidental discoveries that became standard cardiac intervention, dogs (and later, humans) literally connected to one another through beer hoses in the process of developing a heart-lung (bypass) machine- its all real and it’s all insane.I was skeptical of this book written by a cardiologist because I honestly questioned the quality of writing and entertainment it could offer. Yes, it is a history of science. But it is also a collection of the heartwarming, devastating stories that built our modern medicine. Jauhar shares personal anecdotes from his own experience (and not the boring, inflated sense of self-worth kind) and from the scientists’ lives he chronicles that make it read more like a story than a textbook.”Heart: A History” is honest and interesting and informative. Jauhar speaks with such respect toward his patients, the “guinea pigs” of science, and even his med school cadaver, which makes his book even more amazing.If you work in healthcare, care to learn about cardiology, or are just a nerd- read this book! And if you hate it, it is really cute on a coffee table(:

There are so many books about medicine. As a cardiologist I found this one to be more of a history which is already well documented, for example the discovery of how things work. I would have enjoyed more behind the main story stuff about recent techniques such as coronary intervention (the whole angioplasty-stents story is fascinating, the emergence of cardiac electrophysiology and ablation (the latter not even in the index!) gets a small chapter. None of the major personalities in this area, such as Mel Scheinman, Al Waldo, Philippe Coumel, John Gallagher, Ken Rosen, Mark Josephson, Hein Wellens etc, gets a mention At least Dr Michel Mirowski and the implantable defibrillator get a good chunk. Interventional methods such as septal defect closure, valvuloplasty and other valve and structural interventions are also omitted. The dramatic stories behind the emergence of these techniques warrant another volume!Notwithstanding my comments above this is a superbly written book and much superior to some very egotistical memoirs by English Heart surgeons released in the last few years. Lastly, more great European pioneers deserve mention.

I had read 'Journey into the Heart', and I was expecting something similar. In fact this is lightweight and perfunctory. But I guess still interesting for the layman.

The book is very US focused and I think it sometimes ignores big contributions from other countries. I work for a large UK heart charity so know a fair a bit about Britain’s contribution to heart research - most of which is ignored in this book.Nonetheless, Sandeep is a great writer and brings to life some amazing breakthroughs in heart research. He exquisitely ties this research with philosophyical understandings of the heart (being the source of courage, love etc.) and his own family history and experiences.

Its great to hear a cardiologist give a history of the speciality and the tremendous leaps in recent years.A great read for medical and non medical folks alike.

Great read. Good story telling with excellent anecdotes