Mt Sinai Home Care history

1887—Published the first description in the United States on familial amaurotic idiocy, later renamed Tay-Sachs disease.

1892—Performed the first successful mastoidectomy in the United States.

In an effort to help the hospital’s patients balance their medical and social needs, a department of Social Work Services was created in 1907.

1908—Published the first mention of using a blood test for compatibility before human blood transfusion.

1910—Identified endemic form of typhus fever (Brill's disease).

1914—Invented the first modern electric ophthalmoscope.

1919—Performed experimental transmission of encephalitis lethargica.

1923—Became the first in the United States to publish on gastrectomy—a new surgical procedure for duodenal ulcers.

1925—Published description of a new lymphatic system disease, later expanded by Douglas Symmers's work, later known as Brill-Symmers disease and then nodular lymphoma.

1926—Developed test to measure estrogen levels in circulating blood.

1930—Published the first textbook in the United States on pediatric urology.

1932—Published the first description of regional enteritis—an inflammatory disease of the intestine (Crohn's disease).

1933—Published the first description of a total pneumonectomy in the United States.

1935—Published the first description of the vascular lesions in lupus.

1942—Published the first description of collagen disease.

1947—Performed the first kidney dialysis in the United States, using a Kolff artificial kidney.

1950—Published first description of familial lipoprotein deficiency, known as Bassen-Kornzweig syndrome or abetalipoproteinemia.

1951—Became the first to perform closed mitral valve commissurotomy.

1956—Developed and standardized the latex fixation test for the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis.

1960—Published the first description of postperfusion syndrome after open-heart surgery.

1963—Became the first to use a sequential combination regimen of chemotherapy for adjuvant treatment of breast cancer.

Mount Sinai School of Medicine opened in 1968 in affiliation with The City University of New York.

1969—Developed an influenza vaccine—the first genetically engineered vaccine.

1985—Provided the first direct evidence of the involvement of dopamine in schizophrenia.

1986—Performed the first blood transfusion into the vein of an unborn fetus.

2000—Became the first to use black blood magnetic resonance imaging (BB-MR) to image the human coronary artery lumen.

The opening years of the 21st century found The Mount Sinai Medical Center struggling financially, but by the end of the hospital’s 150th anniversary celebration in 2002, steps had already been taken to chart a new course.

2004—Identified the first common gene variant linked to autism.

2006—Discovered a gene in the brain—OLIG2—that may play a causal role in the development of schizophrenia.

2007—Proved why influenza spreads most rapidly in the cold, dry air of winter, and showed that it can be spread just in the air, without coughing, sneezing, or physical contact.