Dr. Cohn is the Chief Medical Officer of BiVACOR Inc. and the Executive Director of Medical Device Labs at the Texas Medical Center. He is also a tenured professor of surgery at Baylor College of Medicine and an adjunct professor of Bioengineering at Rice University and the University of Houston. Prior to joining BiVACOR Inc., he served as a Vice President at Johnson & Johnson MedTech, Executive Director for the Johnson & Johnson Center of Device Innovation at TMC, and Director of the renowned Cullen Cardiovascular Research Laboratory at The Texas Heart Institute.
Dr. Cohn has been deeply involved in developing the continuous-flow, totally implantable, artificial heart. In 2011, Dr. Cohn and Dr. O. H. Frazier successfully implanted the first pulseless total heart replacement device in a human patient. The device had been developed at The Texas Heart Institute.
Dr. Cohn has published extensively and has 124 granted US patents for his medical device innovations that have been foundational for nine venture-backed startups.
See PublicationsTexas Heart Institute Positions
- Teaching Staff, Cardiac Transplantation, Heart Failure and Assist Device Fellowships
- Teaching Staff, Thoracic Surgery Residency
Education
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Undergraduate:
Oberlin College
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Medical School:
Baylor College of Medicine
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Internship:
Baylor College of Medicine
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Residency:
Baylor College of Medicine
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Fellowships:
Beth Israel Hospital, Harvard Medical School
Academic & Clinical Affiliations
Honors, Awards and Memberships
- The Texas Heart Institute Academic Professional Staff
- Honorary Doctorate, Oberlin College
- Ray C. Fish Award for Scientific Achievement, 2026
- Bakken Scientific Achievement Award, 2024
- Lifetime Achievement Award, Houston Technology Center, 2015
- Outstanding Inventor of the Year, Houston IPO, 2014
- Innovation Award, ICI Tel Aviv, 2014
- Inventor of the Year, U.S. Intellectual Property Owners Association, 2000
Publications
Recent News
A Legacy of Invention: Dr. Billy Cohn and the Spirit of Innovation at The Texas Heart Institute
Some careers follow established paths. Others create entirely new ones. For decades, William E. Cohn, MD, known to colleagues and...
The Texas Heart Institute Hosts 2024 Rodeo Roundtable: Cardiogenic Shock
On Saturday, March 2, 2024, The Texas Heart Institute hosted THI Rodeo Roundtable 2024: Cardiogenic Shock, a discussion group chaired...
THI Continues to Play a Pivotal Role in the Latest Development in the Field of Artificial Heart Technology
The Texas Heart Institute partner, BiVACOR, gets additional support Total Artificial Heart program With plans for an FDA-granted investigational...

