Jacqueline Anne Noonan (October 28, 1928 – July 23, 2020) was an American

pediatric Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until the ...

cardiologist Cardiology () is a branch of medicine that deals with disorders of the heart and the cardiovascular system. The field includes medical diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, coronary artery disease, heart failure, valvular ...

best known for her characterization of a genetic disorder now called

Noonan syndrome Noonan syndrome (NS) is a genetic disorder that may present with mildly unusual facial features, short height, congenital heart disease, bleeding problems, and skeletal malformations. Facial features include widely spaced eyes, light-colored ...

. She was also the original describer of

hypoplastic left heart syndrome Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) is a rare congenital heart defect in which the left side of the heart is severely underdeveloped and incapable of supporting the systemic circulation. It is estimated to account for 2-3% of all congenital hea ...

Biography

Noonan was born October 28, 1928 in Burlington, Vermont, United States the daughter of Francis and Eugenia Noonan. She had three sisters, Beverly, Joan, and Joyce. She studied chemistry at

Albertus Magnus College Albertus Magnus College is a private Catholic university in New Haven, Connecticut. Founded by the Dominican Sisters of St. Mary of the Springs (now Dominican Sisters of Peace), it is located in the Prospect Hill neighborhood of New Haven, ...

, medicine at the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is among the oldest universities in the United ...

, and became certified in her field in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

in 1956. She subsequently began work at the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 col ...

. As their first pediatric cardiologist, she noticed that children with a rare type of heart defect called

pulmonary valve stenosis Pulmonary valve stenosis (PVS) is a heart valve disorder. Blood going from the heart to the lungs goes through the pulmonary valve, whose purpose is to prevent blood from flowing back to the heart. In pulmonary valve stenosis this opening is too n ...

often had a characteristic physical appearance with short stature, webbed neck, wide-spaced eyes, and low-set ears. She presented her first paper on the subject in 1963, and after several more papers and recognition, the condition was officially named Noonan syndrome in 1971. Dr. Noonan moved on to the fledgling

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...

medical school in 1961, where she served for over forty years. An endowed chair in pediatric research has been established in her name, and while she semi-retired as of 2007, she was still working at age 85 as of February 2014. She died on July 23, 2020, at the age of 91 with services being held at Cathedral of Christ the King in Lexington, Kentucky on July 27.

Recognition

Aside from the rare distinction of having a medical condition named after her, Noonan has received numerous other honors, including the 1971 Helen B. Frazer Award, the 1985 Harpers Bazaar's Best Women Doctors in America, and later The Best Doctors in America award. She received the A. Bradley Soule Award from the

College of Medicine for dedication to the college as an alumna and mentor to medical students.

References

1928 births 2020 deaths Albertus Magnus College alumni American pediatric cardiologists University of Kentucky faculty People from Burlington, Vermont Kentucky women in health professions American women physicians American women academics 21st-century American women {{US-physician-stub