Dr. Wilfred Gordon Bigelow

Born: June 18, 1913
Birthplace: Brandon, Manitoba

Co-inventor of the electric cardiac pacemaker in 1951

During his service as a surgeon during World War II, Dr. Bigelow became interested in the effects of total body cooling (hypothermia) on metabolic processes. When he returned to the Toronto General Hospital, he carried out physiological studies of this phenomenon, which proved its applicability in cardiac surgery: as the body's core temperature is lowered, metabolism slows down to the point that open-heart surgery becomes feasible. This knowledge was first successfully put to the test in 1953.

Dr. Bigelow also worked extensively to maximize the effectiveness and safety of the cardiac pacemaker, an important therapeutic tool in cases of irregular heartbeat. Among his many prestigious awards are the F.N.G. STARR award from the Canadian Medical Association (1992) and induction as Officer of the Order of Canada in 1981.

When Dr. Bigelow discovered that hypothermia reduced the body's metabolism and opened the door for open heart surgery, he was nonetheless frustrated because the body could only be cooled to about eight degrees Celcius. He set out to uncover the secret of hibernation with the hopes that he might find a clue to safe, deep, hypothermia. Dr. Bigelow chose the groundhog - an animal in great abundance on Ontario farms - as the hibernating animal to study.

Dr. Bigelow and his team spent most of the 1950s studying hybernation, but, after a full ten years finally admitted that the groundhogs would retain their secret.

from: Cold Hearts: The Story of Hypothermia and the Pacemaker in Heart Surgery by W.G. Bigelow, published by McClelland Steward Ltd, 1984.