Juan Manuel Taveras 1919-2002.

Juan M. Taveras, MD, Professor Emeritus at the Harvard Medical School and Radiologist-in-Chief Emeritus of the Massachusetts General Hospital, died in his native Dominican Republic on March 28, 2002. His death marks the passing of a dominant force in the establishment and advancement of the specialty of neuroradiology. His landmark innovations in training, investigation, radiologic administration, and professional organization had global impact, not only on neuroradiology but on the broader spectrum of radiology and the neurosciences in North America and throughout the world. Juan was born in Moca, the Dominican Republic, on September 27, 1919, the son of Marcos M. and Ana L. Taveras. His father was a schoolteacher, and because Juan was an excellent student, he frequently served as a tutor for other students in his classroom. He was given music lessons, and as a teenager played clarinet in a dance band. Later, as a medical student, he worked his way through school playing clarinet, saxophone, and flute in orchestras and jazz bands. He received MD degrees from the University of Santo Domingo in 1943 and from the University of Pennsylvania in 1949. After completing a radiology residency under the direction of Dr. Arthur Finkelstein at the Graduate Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, he joined the staff of Dr. Ross Golden at the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York. In 1952, he and Dr. Golden co-authored Roentgenology of the Abdomen. That same year, Juan was appointed Director of Radiology at the Neurologic Institute of New York. Although he was known as a gastrointestinal radiologist, his background as a superb anatomist suited him well for the job. In North America at that time, it was virtually unheard of for a radiologist to perform neuroradiologic procedures; such procedures were being performed by neurosurgeons. Because neuroradiology was better established in Europe, and especially in Scandinavia, many North American radiologists went to such centers as Stockholm and Oslo to learn the techniques of cerebral arteriography. Juan was determined to revolutionize the practice of neuroradiology at his institution. New equipment was developed to improve the quality of examinations, including a gargantuan apparatus for pneumoencephalography devised by Juan and his colleague, Dr. Gordon Potts. Juan established the first National Institutes of Health-funded fellowship program in neuroradiology and in 1956 inaugurated what was to become the longest continuously running annual postgraduate course in neuroradiology, one that continues to this day. With tact and demonstrated expertise, the role of the neuroradiologist gradually increased, and by the time Juan left New York 13 years later, all neuroradiologic procedures at the Neurologic Institute were performed and interpreted by neuroradiologists. He showed that neuroradiologists could perform the procedures safely and interpret them accurately, and he brought to light that subspecialization was essential for better patient care, research, teaching, and the ultimate development of all of diagnostic radiology. He co-authored, with Dr. Ernest Wood, the first English language textbook of neuroradiology (Taveras JM, Wood EH. Diagnostic Neuroradiology. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins; 1964), which included techniques of performance and interpretation of myelograms, arteriograms, and pneumoencephalograms. It became the standard textbook for a generation of American radiologists, neurologists, and neurosurgeons. In 1962, Juan organized a dinner meeting at Keen’s Chop House in New York, inviting 14 neuroradioloFIG 1. Juan M. Taveras, M.D. Memorial