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A Retrospective
 June 7, 1921 - Born in Utena, Lithuania
1942 - B.S., Summa Cum Laude - University of Maine
1950 - Research Fellow in Cardiology with Dr. Samuel A. Levine, Peter Bent Brigham Hospital
1950 - Demonstrated that diuretic induced potassium loss from the body may predispose one to a life threatening disorder of heart rhythm
1955 - Assistant in Medicine, Harvard Medical School
1956 - Director, Samuel A. Levine Cardiovascular Research Laboratory
1957 - Assistant Professor of Medicine, Department of Nutrition at the Harvard Medical School of Public Health
1961 - Founder and First President, Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR)
1961 - Introduced direct current (DC) electric shock for normalizing deranged rhythm of the dying heart. The device used to administer the current, the defibrillator, is now employed worldwide.
1962 - Discovered cardioversion for restoring a normal beat when
runaway rapid arrhythmia occurs. This technique fundamentally changed the management of persistent tachycardias.
1965 - Introduced the drug lidocaine to protect heart attack victims from fatal cardiac electrical failure.
1966-1976
- Delineated basic principles for treating patients with heart attacks in
coronary care units.
- Formulated the hypothesis that certain types of extra heartbeats
identify patients with heart disease at increased risk for sudden death.
- Associate Professor of Cardiology, Harvard School of Public Health's
Department of Nutrition.
- Demonstrated that some patients at risk of sudden death can be
protected by individualized anti-arrhythmic therapy.
- Established that many patients with multi-vessel coronary artery disease can be treated effectively by medical means without resorting to bypass surgery.
- Director, Samuel A. Levine Corony Care Unit, Peter Bent Brigham
Hospital
- Established that certain nerve signals originating in the brain can
disorganize the heartbeat.
- Demonstrated that sudden death can be triggered by intense
psychological factors, even in the absence of significant heart disease.
- Demonstrated that the heart can be protected against potentially lethal derangements in rhythm by inducing specific alterations in brain
neurochemistry.
1974
- Professor of Cardiology, Harvard School of Public Health
- Founder of USA-China Physicians Friendship Association
1979 - Letter to Evgeni Chazov, Director General of the Cardiovascular Institute of the USSR, suggesting the formation of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War(IPPNW).
1981 - With Dr. Chazov, founded the IPPNW.
1982 - Recipient of the first Cardinal Medieros Peace Award (Boston, MA)
1984 - Recipient, with Dr. Chazov, of the UNESCO Peace Award (Paris, France)
1985 - Recipient, Drs. Lown and Chazov accept the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the IPPNW (Oslo, Norway).
1986 - Recipient of the George F. Kennan Award for promoting dialogue between USA and USSR physicians (Washington, DC).
1987 - Founded SATELLIFE, the first non-profit organization in the world to use satellite technology for promoting health communications with and among health professionals in developing world countries.
1991
- SATELLIFE launches first low earth polar orbit satellite
- Professor of Cardiology Emeritus, Harvard School of Public Health
1996 - Published The Lost Art of Healing. Translations now available in Japanese, Chinese, Portugese, Russian, German, and Spanish.
1997 - Founded ProCor, the first international Internet forum to address the epidemic of cardiovascular disease in developing countries.
1999 - A Founder and Chairman of the Alliance to Defend Healthcare. This is a Massachusetts based group of over 2000 healthcare professionals working to restore compassion and the primacy of the patient to medicine. They encouraged the placement of a referendum question on the Massachusetts ballot to promote universal access to healthcare, a patient's bill of rights, and to stop the for-profit dominance of medicines.
2000 - Practicing the Art While Mastering the Science, a Cardiologist Reflects on Healing, a collection of Dr. Lown's writings with commentaries, second edition is edited and published by Dr. Robert Bloomfield and Dr. Carolyn Pedley. (First edition published in 1995, edited by James Rakowski).
2001 - Panel Member, Nobel Peace Prize Centennial Symposium, and Guest at the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Celebration, 100th Anniversary of Nobel Prizes in Oslo, Norway in December. 2002 - Recipient, the medal of Cross of Commander of the Order of Grand Duke Gediminas, the highest honor from his native country of Lithuania on February 18, 2003, in recognition of outstanding service to the medical field. 2005 - Recipient, John Hopkins School of Medicine Distinguished Medical Alumnus Award in June (Baltimore, MD). 2008 - Published Prescription for Survival: A Doctor's Journey to End Nuclear Madness.
- September 13, 2008: Dr. Bernard Lown Day was proclaimed in the State of Massachusetts by Governor Deval L. Patrick, in the City of Boston by Mayor Thomas M. Menino, and in the United States of America by the Congressman Barney Frank and Senator Edward M. Kennedy.
- October 17, 2008: Dr. Bernard Lown Day was proclaimed in the State of Maine by Governor John E. Baldacci.
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