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Heartland Muse: Does anyone know the Hellman?

Saturday, January 21, 2006 6:34 AM CST

If you have ever found yourself in a position where you wanted to die laughing but couldn't because of the circumstances, you will really appreciate something that my wife, Viola, observed several months ago.

She was attending a luncheon with a group of ladies from our church and they had just sat down to eat when one of the older women in the group got choked on a piece of meat.

As she struggled to free the food from her throat, one of the other ladies said, "Does anyone know the Hellman?" After several more seconds, with no response, she asked her question again, but this time louder and in a more shrill voice, "Does anyone know the Hellman?" Viola said, "I really felt for the lady who was choking, and it could have been much more serious and that's why I couldn't laugh."

You would just have to know this lady to get the full impact, but what she was referring to was the world famous Heimlich Maneuver, discovered and perfected by thoracic surgeon Dr. Henry J. Heimlich.

Back when Viola told me about this experience, I never dreamed that I would have the opportunity to personally interview Dr. Heimlich on the telephone and have him tell me, first hand, how his discovery came about and some of the other significant medical achievements that he has accomplished in more recent times. Apparently he had read some of my columns on the Internet, saw that both our wives have Parkinson's, and he had his publicist, Bob Kraft, drop me a note to see if I might like to visit with him.

What a blessing it has turned out to be. Dr. Heimlich was a delightful person to talk with and so very knowledgeable. He is still quite active in medical research and spends time at the Heimlich Institute in Cincinnati, Ohio. He turned 85 back on Feb. 3, 2005.

The Heimlich Maneuver was discovered because he often saw patients who were choking and he wanted to find a way to prevent it from happening. With a great deal of experimentation, he discovered that when someone was choking, another person could wrap their arms around them from the back, place their interlocked hands above the belly button and apply a series of quick upward jolts to cause the diaphragm to force air from the lungs at a rapid rate.

This rapid force of expelled air is what causes foreign objects or matter to be dislodged from the throat. One quick side note, according to Dr. Heimlich, never slap or beat someone on the back when they are choking. This just causes the foreign object to go even deeper.

Dr. Heimlich went on to tell me that he worked on developing the Heimlich Maneuver for two years. In 1974, Dr. Heimlich reported the Heimlich Maneuver in a medical journal and it quickly spread throughout the world.

By 1985, it had saved so many choking victims, the U.S. surgeon general, Dr. C. Everett Koop, officially approved it and stated the Heimlich Maneuver was safe and effective and could be used on adults and children.

More than 100,000 people worldwide have been saved by using the Heimlich Maneuver, including many celebrities. Among these are Ronald Reagan, Ed Koch, Elizabeth Taylor, Goldie Hawn, Walter Matthau, Dick Vitale and Jack Lemmon.

Although Dr. Heimlich is best known as the developer of the Heimlich Maneuver, he has been a medical pioneer for more than half a century, and he is an advocate of natural and low-cost medical solutions whenever possible.

He developed a treatment for trachoma, a bacterial infection that can lead to blindness, while serving with the U.S. Navy in China in World War II.

He invented the Heimlich Chest Drain Valve, which saved the lives of thousands of U.S. soldiers in Vietnam. He also performed the first esophagus transplant surgery in the U.S., using a tube created from the portion of the stomach, and which today helps overcome esophagus birth defects.

These are only a few of the things this outstanding physician has contributed to the betterment of his fellow man. When I asked him how he would like to be remembered, he said, "As someone who really cares about others. I am presently involved in AIDS and cancer research and the emphasis of the Heimlich Institute is 'A Caring World'." For more information, please visit his Web site at www.heimlichinstitute.org.

Jim Davidson is a motivational speaker and syndicated columnist.