Rustom Jal Vakil (17 July 1911 – 20 November 1974) was a cardiologist from India who was awarded a Padma Bhushan for his contributions to medicine. He was the first Indian to win a

Lasker Award The Lasker Awards have been awarded annually since 1945 to living persons who have made major contributions to medical science or who have performed public service on behalf of medicine. They are administered by the Lasker Foundation, which was ...

. Born in

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the '' de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the sec ...

in 1911, Vakil completed his medical education in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. He pioneered the use of

reserpine Reserpine is a drug that is used for the treatment of high blood pressure, usually in combination with a thiazide diuretic or vasodilator. Large clinical trials have shown that combined treatment with reserpine plus a thiazide diuretic reduces m ...

to control hypertension. Reserpine is derived from Indian Snakeroot, ''Rauwolfia serpentina'', known in

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

and

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

as Pagal-ki-dawa (‘‘medicine for the insane’’) Himachal Pradesh. It was later explored as a treatment for

schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social wi ...

Books authored

*''Clinical Diagnosis'' *''Textbook of Medicine'' *''The romance of healing and other essays'' *''Heart in Health and Disease''

Awards received

*1958 Padma Bhushan *1959 International Albert Lasker Award *1965 Shanti Swaroop Bhatnagar Award *1969

B.C.Roy Award The Bidhan Chandra Roy Award was instituted in 1962 in memory of Dr. B. C. Roy by the Medical Council of India. It is presented by the President of India in New Delhi every year on July 1, National Doctors' Day. It is also the highest honour tha ...

*1971 The V World Congress of Cardiology Souvenir Award by the Cardiological Society of India *1973 The First Dhanwantari Award

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vakil, Rustom Jal Indian cardiologists Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in medicine Parsi people from Mumbai 1911 births 1974 deaths Recipients of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in Medical Science Recipients of the Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians Medical doctors from Mumbai 20th-century Indian medical doctors Parsi people Indian expatriates in the United Kingdom