Who is Guyton? Arthur Clifton Guyton is an American physiologist, who wrote "The Textbook of Medical Physiology". He was born on September 8, 1919 to a highly respected otolaryngologist Billy Guyton and the mathematics and physics teacher Kate Smallwood. Career in Medicine Beginning his career in medicine, he wanted to be a neurosurgeon. However, at the last year of residency, he got polio. During 1946, polio was still an infection that lead to many co-morbidities, and to Arthur, it made him suffer from paralysis in his right leg, left arm and both shoulders. Consequently, he is no more able to practice surgery and started a pursuing a career in physiology. He then became a professor of physiology, and years later he became the head of physiology and biophysics department in the University of Mississipi. He pioneered in the study of the cardiac system. Previously, it was believed that the heart controlled the cardiac output; however, Guyton proved that cardiac output was affected by the body's demand. He published several studies about cardiac output, and he included these findings and the "Guyton Curves" in the textbook of medical physiology. The Textbook of Medical Physiology The first edition of the textbook of medical physiology was published in 1956. It was completely written by Guyton alone, but starting from the ninth edition (2000), John E. Hall co-authored the textbook. The latest version of this book is the 13th edition, which was published in 2016. This book is the bestselling medical book in physiology, and it has been translated into 15 languages. Guyton's inventions Arthur Guyton was not only a smart physician and physiologist, but he was also a genius in creating devices and home appliances, especially to aid the handicapped. He invented the motorized wheelchair which was controlled by a joystick. He also made special leg braces and motorized hoist for lifting patients. He once even wanted to build a TV from scratch, so he ordered the components and put them together, and later all the neighborhood children gathered at his home to witness him turning the TV on for the first time. Dr. Guyton working in his workshop. Guyton's Family He was married to Ruth A Weigle, who had a degree in biblical history. Together they parented 10 children and who all grew up to became doctors. Mr. and Mrs. Guyton. Their success was contributed to their father's policy in education. Arthur Guyton believed that education is best by implementing the theoretical ideas. He and his children, build their home together, the heating system, the swimming pool, tennis court and many hope appliances. Dr. David Guyton said, reflecting, “Our parents had high morals that were ingrained in us more by example than by recitation or discussion. Honesty, truthfulness and fairness were highest on the list, with charity to others being high up there as well. We respected them both so much that we wanted to be like them. Arthur's Family “Sharing was taught by how often it came up with so many children. One of Daddy’s favorite ways was evident when dividing a pie among eight individuals. He would assign one of the children to cut the pie into so many equal pieces, and the cutter would have the last piece. There was some very careful pie cutting going on!” The Guytons were in a car accident, which lead to Arthur passing away on April 3, 2003 due to injuries of a road traffic accident. And a week later, his wife died.
