Ray Rosenman M.D.

Ray H. Rosenman, M.D.

Died peacefully on May 30, 2013, after a long illness. With Meyer Friedman, MD, he was the co-founder of the concept of Type A Behavior and co-author of the book "Type A Behavior and Your Heart," a Book of the Month Club choice that won both The American Medical Writer's Association Award and the Medical Self-Care Award from Medical Self-Care magazine.

Born in Akron OH in 1920 and raised in Detroit MI, he received AB and MD degrees from the University of Michigan, and was a Captain in the U.S. Army Medical Corps in late WWII. He had internships at U of M, Ann Arbor and at Michael Reese Hospital, Chicago. After military service he returned there for residencies in Internal Medicine, Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research. He moved with his wife and young daughters to San Francisco in 1950, and since then devoted half-time to the clinical practice of Internal Medicine and Cardiology and half-time to experimental, epidemiological, and clinical research in lipid metabolism, hypertension, and coronary heart disease. He was Associate Chief of the Harold Brunn Institute for Cardiovascular Research at Mount Zion Hospital and Medical Center in San Francisco from 1951 to 1977. He then transferred his research program to SRI International (formerly Stanford Research Institute) in Menlo Park, although continuing to live and practice in San Francisco. He retired in 1992 as Director of Cardiovascular Research in the Health Sciences Program at SRI and as Associate Chief of Medicine at Mount Zion Hospital and Medical Center in San Francisco. He remained on the Honorary Staff of the Mount Zion Medical Center of UCSF in San Francisco.

He was elected to the prestigious American Society for Clinical Investigation after his research clarified the mechanism of nephrotic hyperlipemia. He was made an Honorary Fellow of the Hollywood Academy of Medicine, The Pavlonian Society and The Purkinje Medical Society of Czechoslovakia. His past honors included a Van Meter Prize Award from the American Goiter Association for his research that elucidated the cause of blood cholesterol changes in thyroid disorders; a Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Michael Reese Hospital of Chicago; The Hans Selye Award of the American Institute of Stress in Switzerland; and the Distinguished Alumnus Award of the Mount Zion Medical Center of the University of California, San Francisco.

During his 45-year active career, he presented the results of his research at more than 200 research society meetings, and was invited to give over 700 lectures at hospitals, medical schools, medical societies, and other scientific groups in every state of the USA, and in 26 countries on every continent.

He was a member of NIH Study Sections, the Committee on Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease of the American College of Cardiology, and the Medical Advisory Board of the Council for High Blood Pressure Research of the American Heart Association. He was the Cardiology Consultant for 16 years to the US Public Health Hospital in San Francisco and for many years was a Consultant to the U.S. Brooks Air Force Base School of Aerospace Medicine in San Antonio TX.

Dr. Rosenman was predeceased by his beloved wife, Natalie, in 1972, after a 16-year illness from a rare variant form of ALS, and in 2011 by his retired surgeon brother, Leonard. He is survived by daughters Sally Rosenman and Laurie (Jim) Ghielmetti, grandsons Michael (Rebecca) and Brian (Tatiana), five great grandchildren Matteo, Lucas, Natalie, Mila and Sebastian, sister-in-law, Elaine Salz, and long-time, close friend, Dr. Vera Price. As requested by the decedent, there will be no services or donation suggestions.