Denton Cooley 1960s. He and his colleagues worked on developing new artificial heart valves from 1962 to 1967; during that period, mortality for heart valve transplants fell from 70% to 8%. In 1969, he became the first heart surgeon to implant an artificial heart designed by Domingo Liotta in a man, Haskell Karp, who lived for 65 hours. The next year, in 1970, "he performed the first implantation of an artificial heart in a human when no heart replacement was immediately available." Cooley's interests included basketball, which he played in high school and as a three-year letterman for the UT men's basketball
Domingo Liotta Shared with Jesús Zerbini (Brazil). 1970: Decoration, Great Cross of Alphonse The Wise (Gran Cruz de Alfonso el Sabio), the highest Spanish civil decoration. Shared with Denton A. Cooley. 1971: Decoration, Order Legion of Merit, Government of the Province of Entre Rios, Argentina. 1973: Professor of Surgery (Honorary), National University of Córdoba, Argentina. 1973: Decoration, Attending Cardiovascular Surgeon of Chinese Hospitals and Consultant of the Ministry of Public Health. Designated by the National State Council of the People's Republic of China. The Council was presided by Premier Chu En-lai. 1974: Decoration, Gran Cavallieri d'Onore for Humanitarian Services, Rome, Italy, the