Starr-Edwards Aortic Heart Valve Prosthesis

Object Details

American Edwards Laboratories

Description (Brief)

The Starr Edwards was the first artificial valve to use the caged ball design. This example, model number 2320, was used to replace diseased aortic valves. The valve is still sealed in its original plastic casing, and has never been opened. The struts and the sewing ring are covered with Polyproplylene over Teflon cloth. Because the style of the caged ball valve differed greatly from the form of a natural valve, Starr described it as, "a repugnant intracardiac appliance." The valve model was manufactured between 1967 and 1976. It was used extensively worldwide, and there are reports of this valve still functioning twenty-five years after implantation. However, one of its problems was wear and breakdown of the cloth covering, sometimes tearing and causing blood clots. It has the advantage of good hemodynamics and durability, but the disadvantage of having to take anti-coagulants/blood thinners to prevent clotting. This valve was occasionally noisy.

The Starr Edwards is valve was manufactured by American Edwards Laboratories, a company founded by Dr. Albert Starr, MD (1926- ) of Bellevue Hospital of Columbia University, and Lowell Edwards (1889-1982), a semi-retired engineer from the University of Oregon. The two collaborators began to develop their original Starr-Edwards valve in 1958.

Dr. Starr did his residency at Johns Hopkins, where the famed Blalock and Taussig pioneering operation to treat children born with the heart malformation tetralogy of Fallotoperation. While there, he also worked with Dr. Denton Cooley.

Location

Currently not on view

Credit Line

Gift of Manuel Villafaña

1967-1976

ID Number

2015.0031.17

catalog number

2015.0031.17

accession number

2015.0031

model number

2320

serial number

H7917

Object Name

cardiology

artificial heart valve

Physical Description

polypropylene (valve material)

stellite (valve material)

plastic (container material)

Measurements

container: 6.2 cm; 2 7/16 in

place made

United States: California, Santa Ana

See more items in

Medicine and Science: Medicine

Artificial Heart Valves

Health & Medicine

National Museum of American History

Subject

Cardiology

Artificial Organs

Prosthesis

Record ID

nmah_1726271

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746b1-ea43-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa