Howard Tatum

Howard J. Tatum (1915 – 2002) was an American obstetrician. Along with Chilean physician Jaime Zipper, he invented the copper intrauterine device (IUD). The Tatum-T intrauterine device was the first T-shaped copper-bearing IUD to be sold in the United States, and its T-shaped design served as the foundation for other intrauterine devices.

Early life and education Howard J. Tatum was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1915. Tatum earned a Bachelor of Arts in chemistry in 1936 and a Ph.D. in pharmacology and toxicology in 1941. In 1945, he earned a Doctor of Medicine, and in 1949, a degree in obstetrics and gynecology.

Career After completing his studies, Tatum was a professor of medicine at several American Universities. In 1966, Tatum became the associate director and senior scientist at the Center of Biomedical Research at the Population Council in New York City. Tatum became a professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at Emory University in .

Intrauterine devices

Tatum met his future collaborator, Jaime Zipper, during a sabbatical spent at the University of Santiago, Chile from 1964 to 1965. The last model Tatum developed was the TCu380A, which remains in widespread use.

Tatum sold the Tatum-T invention to the non-profit Population Council for $1 and earned nothing from sales of the devices. However, due to patent issues, it was beaten to the US market in 1974 by the Cu-7 200, also known as the "copper-7", which was marketed by G. D. Searle & Company as Gravigard.

Following reports of serious medical problems associated with the Dalkon Shield intrauterine device, Tatum suggested the hypothesis at the initial August 1974 FDA hearing that the Dalkon Shield's multi-filament tail acted like a wick, drawing bacteria into the uterus. His further research supported the hypothesis, and Tatum wrote in a letter to the FDA on October 25, 1974 that, although his research did not definitively prove the link between the Dalkon Shield's tail and reported septic abortions and sepsis, the data suggested a causal relationship that he believed was sufficient to recommend against clinical usage of the device. His research helped to convince the FDA of the Dalkon Shield's potential harms, and the committee extended a moratorium on sales of the device in the US.

After the injuries and deaths caused by the Dalkon Shield, the high costs of lawsuits spilled over to other IUD manufacturers. As a result, Searle removed both the Tatum-T and the copper-7 from the US markets in 1986. The Copper-T devices remained available for use in Canada. Many modern hormonal IUDs are also based on Tatum's T-shaped design. and the two regularly collaborated in their work. In 1981, they moved to Atlanta, Georgia, and both joined the faculty of Emory University.