Less Invasive Treatment of Heart Valve Disease

Abstract

After the advent of the heart–lung machine, which permitted open-heart surgery, in 1953, valve surgery was one of the most important advances in cardiac surgery. Initially, only conservative procedures were possible, but the first orthotopic human implantation of an artificial valve, by Starr in 1960, permitted the replacement of most cardiac valves not amenable to repair. Since then, more than a million and a half patients have had valve replacement using countless models of prostheses.