Gerald Berenson
Born
Gerald Sanders Berenson

(1922-09-19)September 19, 1922
DiedNovember 22, 2018(2018-11-22) (aged 96)
OccupationCardiologist
Academic background
Alma materTulane University

Gerald Sanders Berenson (September 19, 1922 – November 22, 2018) was an American cardiologist, heart researcher, and public health specialist who specialized in researching the causes of heart diseases.[1] Berenson's fundamental research revealed that adult heart disease arises from practices and behaviors that begin in childhood. He also discovered that atherosclerosis was significantly more pronounced in individuals who had three or four cardiovascular risk factors compared to those who had none.[2][3][4]

Early life and education

Berenson was born into a family of Polish Jewish descent in Bogalusa, Louisiana, on September 19, 1922[1][2][3] to Meyer Berenson and Eva Singerman Berenson, who operated several businesses, including The State Theater and Berenson's Clothing Store. He had two older siblings, Sara Berenson Stone and Byrde Berenson Haspel.[5][4]

Berenson completed his bachelor's in science from Tulane University in 1943. He received his medical degree from Tulane in 1945. He then served as a doctor in the US Navy from 1945 to 1948.[1][2][6][3]

Career

Following his discharge from the U.S. Navy in 1948, he taught at Tulane University until 1952.

From 1952 to 1954, Berenson was then a research fellow at the University of Chicago, studying under the direction of the pediatric department chairman Albert Dorfman, with whom he conducted studies of rheumatic fever.[4][7]

Upon the completion of his fellowship In 1954, Berenson joined Louisiana State University's medical school in New Orleans as an Assistant Professor in the department of medicine.[1][2] In 1958 he was promoted to Associate Professor. In 1962, he was elected as a fellow of the American College of Physicians. In 1963, he was promoted to full professor. In 1964, he was elected a fellow of the American College of Cardiologists. In the same year, he published research about racial disparities in glycoproteins in the human aorta. In 1966, he served as president of the New Orleans Academy of Internal Medicine. in 1971, he served as president of the Louisiana affiliate of the American Heart Association.[4]

In 1972, as a professor of cardiology at Louisiana State University School of Medicine, he started the Bogalusa Heart Study,[4] and it ran for four decades.[8][9] The study was named for the community in southern Louisiana where it took place (and where Berenson was born and raised). It was the only long-term study of heart disease in a single community with a stable population involving the consistent participation of Black and Caucasian Youth from early childhood through adulthood and middle age. It included over 16,000 participants. Berenson led the study until 2014 (and it has continued to the present day).[2][3]

From 1985 to 1987, in connection with his leadership of the Bogalusa Heart Study, he served as director of the first National Research and Demonstration Center- Arteriosclerosis, as designated by the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute.[3]

In 1986, Berenson was named Boyd Professor, the highest award for a faculty member at Louisiana State University. In 1987, he built upon the findings of the Bogalusa Heart Study to create "Health Ahead/Heart Smart," a health education program for children that addressed issues such as self-esteem, exercise, nutrition, violence, drugs, and sexually transmitted diseases.

In 1991, he joined the faculty at Tulane University, where his family funded a professorship to honor his research, transferring the National Institutes of Health grant funding the Bogalusa Heart Study to Tulane.[1][10] In 2001, he was named Chair in Preventive Cardiology. In 2015, Berenson accepted an appointment as a research professor at LSU, which he held until his death in 2018.[1][10] In 2002, he became a founding member of the International Child Cardiovascular Cohort Consortium.[3]

He was the author of five medical books and over 1,000 research articles in peer-reviewed journals that spanned the fields of cardiology, pediatrics, biochemistry, epidemiology, and public health.[2]

Selected books

Selected articles

Awards and honors

Berenson received numerous awards in the field of cardiology, as well as other awards for his commitment to the health of children and adults. His research grants totaled over $55 million from the National Institutes of Health. He and his wife received the A.I. Botnick Torch of Liberty Award from the Anti-Defamation League of New Orleans.[2] He was one of the earliest members of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular.[4]

His awards and honors include:

Personal life

Berenson married Joan Seidenbach Berenson (1951 – 2018) and they had four children: two daughters and two sons (Leslie Berenson, Ann Berenson Goldfarb, Robert Berenson, Laurie Berenson Maas).[2][4] Berenson died in Houston, Texas on November 22, 2018, aged 96.[1][2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Roberts, Sam (November 29, 2018). "Dr. Gerald Berenson, 96, Dies; Traced Heart Disease to Childhood". New York Times. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Pope, John (November 24, 2018). "Dr. Gerald Berenson, pioneer in heart disease research, dies at 96". New Orleans Times Picayune. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Dwyer, Terence; Viikari, Jorma; Sinaiko, Alan; Burns, Trudy; Daniels, Stephen; Juonala, Markus; Woo, Jessica; Urbina, Elaine; Steinberger, Julia; Hu, Tian; Raitakari, Olli (2019-05-01). "In Memoriam for Gerald Berenson". Hypertension. 73 (5): 936–937. doi:10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.119.12474. PMID 30969859.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h "Gerald S. Berenson (1922–2018)". www.asbmb.org. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  5. ^ "Gerald Sanders Berenson MD". New Orleans Advocate. November 23, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  6. ^ Times-Picayune, John Pope, NOLA com | The. "Dr. Gerald Berenson, pioneer in heart disease research, dies at 96". NOLA.com. Retrieved 2022-02-07.((cite web)): CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ "Medicine on the Midway - Fall 2019 by University of Chicago Medicine - Issuu".
  8. ^ "Gerald Berenson, MD". University of Minnesota. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  9. ^ "Dr. Gerald Berenson, creator of Bogalusa Heart Study and LSU cardiology professor, dies at 96". New Orleans Advocate. November 24, 2018. Archived from the original on December 1, 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018 – via Oneida Daily Dispatch.Alt URL
  10. ^ a b "The Passing of Dr. Gerald Berenson". Louisiana State University. November 2018. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
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