Mark E. Silverman

Mark Edwin Silverman (June 21, 1939 – November 12, 2008) was an American cardiologist, medical historian, medical educator and author of more than 200 medical articles and a number of books, who founded the cardiology program at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia.

Between 1966 and 1968, at the request of John Willis Hurst, he became a cardiology fellow at the Emory University in Atlanta. His interest in medical photographs led him to produce more than 24 articles on the value of images in the diagnosis of a number of diseases. In 1968, he co-authored an article with Hurst, titled The Hand and the Heart, illustrated with clinical pictures of findings in the hands of people with cardiovascular disease. They demonstrated, using a "Sherlock Holmesian approach", how the condition of the heart might be revealed by clues in the hands. The article made international headlines.

In 1970, a faculty position at Piedmont Hospital was created for him by Hurst, and Silverman subsequently established its first cardiology program. Eight years later, he was made professor at Emory. At Piedmont, he also created one of America's earliest patient education libraries, started programs to help people learn about heart disease and its prevention, and for over 25 years directed Piedmont's coronary care unit.

He made significant contributions to a number of books including British Cardiology in the 20th Century (2000), a collection of 867 quotations by Sir William Osler in The Quotable Osler (2002) and J. Willis Hurst: His Life and Teachings (2007).

In 1979, Silverman became president of the Georgia Chapter of the American Heart Association. In 2000, he was elected president of the American Osler Society, and in 2001 his work in British medical history was rewarded with a fellowship of the Royal Society of Medicine. The Mark E. Silverman Endowed Chair in Cardiology and Education was established in his name.

Early life and education Mark Silverman was born on June 21, 1939, in Springfield, Ohio. His father was a grocer. In 1959, he graduated from Ohio State University and then gained admission to the School of Medicine at the University of Chicago. In between his junior and senior years at medical school, during one summer, he attended Guy's Hospital in London, where he became interested in both clinical signs and the history of medicine. He received his MD in 1963 and returned to Ohio State to complete his internship and residency. Here, he was inspired to pursue a career in the specialty of cardiology by cardiac catheterisation pioneer James V. Warren and academic cardiologist John Willis Hurst, who was a visiting professor at Ohio State and the chief of medicine at Emory University in Atlanta.

Career Emory University Hospital

Silverman became interested in medical photography and produced a collection which drove him to publish more than 24 articles on the value of images in the diagnosis of a number of diseases. Between 1966 and 1968, at the request of Hurst, he became a cardiology fellow at the Emory University in Atlanta. He begins with a quote from Arthur Conan Doyle's A Study in Scarlet (1887):

Let him, on meeting a fellow-mortal, learn at a glance to distinguish the history of the man, and the trade or profession to which he belongs. Puerile as such an exercise may seem, it sharpens the faculties of observation, and teaches one where to look and what to look for. By a man's finger-nails, by his coat-sleeve, by his boots, by his trouser-knees, by the callosities of his forefinger and thumb, by his expression, by his shirt-cuffsby each of these things a man's calling is plainly revealed. That all united should fail to enlighten the competent inquirer in any case is almost inconceivable.

It made international headlines.

The influence of history also meant that when teaching new medical students, he would incorporate history of medicine by dressing as William Harvey and then read from De Motu Cordis. and for both these organisations, he designed their ties. The Mark Silverman award is presented to a physician involved in the Georgia Chapter of the ACP who "has demonstrated excellence in bedside skills and teaching" and "served as an inspiration for younger physicians to advance their knowledge and training in medicine".

Selected publications Silverman authored more than 200 medical articles and a number of books.

Books Electrocardiography, basic concepts and clinical application. Co-authored with Robert J Myerburg and J Willis Hurst. New York : McGraw-Hill, (1983). Clinical skills for adult primary care. Co-authored with J Willis Hurst. Philadelphia : Lippincott-Raven (1996). British Cardiology in the 20th Century. Co-edited with Peter R. Fleming, Arthur Hollman, Desmond G. Julian and Dennis M. Krikler. Springer (2000). The quotable Osler. William Osler. Co-authored with Charles S. Bryan and T. J. Murray. Philadelphia : American College of Physicians (2002). J. Willis Hurst: His Life and Teachings. Co-authored with W. Bruce Fye and N. J. Mahwah, (2007). Foundation for Advances in Medicine and Science.

Articles "The hand and the heart". Co-authored with J. Willis Hurst. The American Journal of Cardiology. November 1968 Vol.22, Issue 5, Pages 718–728. "The mitral complex. Interaction of the anatomy, physiology, and pathology of the mitral annulus, mitral valve leaflets, chordae tendineae, and papillary muscles". Co-authored with Hurst. American Heart Journal (1968) Sep;76(3):399-418. "Profiles in Cardiology; Charles J. B. Williams: English Pioneer in Auscultation". Clinical Cardiology (2007). Vol.30, pp. 532–534. .