Stroke Treatment Pioneer Fields Dies

William S. Fields, 90, one of Texas’ first neurologists and a pioneer in research on the treatment and prevention of strokes, died March 21.

He was the first chair of the Department of Neurology at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, serving from 1974 until his retirement in 1982.

A native of Baltimore, Fields received his bachelor’s and medical degrees from Harvard University.

When Fields joined the faculty of Baylor College of Medicine in 1949, he was one of three neurologists in Texas. He later founded and became first chairman of Baylor’s neurology department. He also organized the neurology section of the Department of Medicine at the UT M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Today’s recommendations to take aspirin to prevent heart attacks and strokes originated in research directed by Fields while he was at the UT Medical School in the late 1970s. A donation from Fields established the William S. Fields Lectureship, which has supported 15 annual lectures at the Medical School.

His long list of accomplishments locally include securing seed money from Jesse Jones, Houston Chronicle owner and publisher, to establish the Texas Medical Center/Houston Academy of Medicine Library.

He leaves two daughters, Susan Hendricks of Birmingham, Ala., and Ann Butler of Emmitsburg, Md. A memorial service will be at 4 p.m., Thursday, May 13, at Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church.