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t m c » p u l s e | m a y 2 0 1 8 23 N O W P R E - L E A S I N G G A L L E R I A / U P T O W N D I S T R I C T C L A S S A A M E D I C A L O F F I C E S PA C E TANGLEWOOD MEDICAL Justin Brasell | Vice President 713.231.1595 | Justin.Brasell@transwestern.com Eric Johnson | National Director 713.272.1217 | Eric.Johnson@transwestern.com put his artificial heart in a patient. And thus began the famous feud between Cooley and DeBakey that lasted for half a century. Surgeons—especially surgeons in Houston— are the world's largest concentration of mass, raw ego, Mattox said. They are fiercely competitive and they often try to outflank each another, just like athletes. "It was wonderful training with Dr. DeBakey," Mattox said. "He was a tremendous taskmaster, but he expected nothing of anyone else that he didn't expect of himself. He considered sleep a bad habit. He would run up nine flights of stairs. He was totally dedicated to his patients and he was always looking for a better way. In essence, that is what medicine is all about." Shock and awe In 1973, Mattox began his career at Ben Taub as deputy surgeon-in-chief, director of emergency surgical services and chief of thoracic surgery ser- vice. With so many new responsibilities, he began recruiting a strong support staff—beginning with his assistant, Mary Allen. "Mary has been with me since the first day I started—almost 50 years," Mattox recalled. "She knows things I have long since forgotten." Today, the two work in side-by-side offices lined with books written by Mattox and edited by Allen, photographs of Mattox with world lead- ers, and a jumble of awards, honors and plaques. Throughout the work day, Mattox frequently calls Allen into his office to discuss ongoing and upcoming projects. "He always impresses me with his enthusi- asm for his job and what he does for the patients. His dedication never wanes," Allen said. "A lot of people get burned out and frustrated, but he never does. Anything that other people would consider frustrating or challenging, he considers an opportunity." Mattox took over as chief of staff and sur- geon-in-chief at Ben Taub Hospital in 1990. His training and resourcefulness in the military, as well as years of experience in cardiac and general surgery, elevated the hospital's reputation for trauma care. Among his notable practices: Maintaining low blood pressure in trauma victims to keep their bodies in a state of shock. "Shock is actually beneficial, and that idea was started by me. During the Gulf Wars, we had hypotensive resuscitation," Mattox said, referring to the practice of maintaining blood pressure in the lower than normal range when a patient expe- riences continuous bleeding during an injury. "We did not take blood pressure cuffs to war, we only talked to the person and asked for their name, rank and serial number and felt for a pulse. If they had either of those, we didn't operate on them immediately. If they were losing those, we'd cut them and took care of what was bleeding." Mattox's name has become synonymous with trauma care. His textbook, Trauma, co-written with Ernest E. Moore, M.D., and David V. Feliciano, M.D., is the definitive guide to trauma surgery. Mattox has made significant breakthroughs in trauma resuscitation—specifically regarding shock, trauma systems, thoracic trauma, vascular trauma, auto transfusion, complex abdominal trauma and multi-system trauma. One trauma technique even bears his name: The "Mattox Maneuver" refers to the mobilization of the descending colon to the midline to expose the abdominal aorta. (continued) It was wonderful training with Dr. DeBakey. He was a tremendous taskmaster, but he expected nothing of anyone else that he didn't expect of himself. He considered sleep a bad habit.