Science Past from the issue of November 4, 1961

ARTIFICIAL HEART VALVE — A previously hopeless condition of the heart — a defective heart valve — can now be corrected by successful surgery, it was reported at the American Heart Association meeting in Miami Beach, Fla. Many of the 500 gravely ill patients described by three teams of surgeons who did partial or total replacements of the aortic valve (located at the root of the aorta, the body’s main artery) are still living, 10 to 18 months following surgery.… Another key factor reported was the development of synthetic materials such as Teflon, which can safely be implanted within the body and which resists the formation of blood clots.